How to print barcode labels from Shopify

Before you start

Each label needs something to encode. In Shopify, open a product and look at each variant's Barcode (ISBN, UPC, GTIN, etc.) and SKU fields under Inventory.

• If a variant has a UPC or EAN in the Barcode field, the label prints that as a retail barcode.
• If it only has a SKU, the label can print the SKU as a Code 128 barcode, which handles letters, numbers and dashes.
• If it has neither, Crisp Labels prints the rest of the label and warns you which item has no barcode.

Not sure which you need? See SKU vs UPC vs EAN. Products with no codes yet? See how to add barcodes to Shopify products.

Step by step

1. Install Crisp Labels from the Shopify App Store and open it from your Shopify admin.
2. Add products. Press Add products, pick products or individual variants, and set how many labels each one needs.
3. Pick a label size. Choose an Avery sheet (for laser or inkjet printers) or a roll size (for label printers). If yours isn't listed, enter its width and height. See the label size guide.
4. Set the printer resolution to match your printer: 203 or 300 dpi for most label printers, 600 for laser and inkjet sheets. Bars are sized to whole printer dots at this resolution.
5. Choose what shows. Product name, variant, vendor, SKU, price, sale price with the original struck through, and the barcode. The preview updates as you change things.
6. Print. The app opens a PDF sized to your labels. Print it at 100% or Actual size, never "Fit to page".

Printing on sheets

• Print one page on plain paper first and hold it against a label sheet up to the light. If it's off by a little, use Nudge right and Nudge down.
• Using a sheet that's partly used? Set Start at label to the first empty position.
• Letter sheets (Avery 5160, 5167) and A4 sheets (L7160, L7651) are different page sizes. Pick the one that matches your paper.

Printing on rolls

• Pick the roll size that matches your labels, and set the same size in your printer's driver settings.
• Set the resolution in the app to your printer's dpi. A mismatch is the most common reason thin bars blur.
• Very small labels can't fit a long barcode. The app tells you when a value is too long for the label, so you can use a wider label or a shorter value.

Printer-by-printer setup for Dymo, Zebra, Rollo and Brother is in the label printer guide. If a label won't scan, work through barcode labels not scanning.

Common questions

Can Shopify print barcode labels on its own?

Shopify stores a barcode for each variant in the Barcode (ISBN, UPC, GTIN, etc.) field, but the admin has no built-in label printing. You print labels with an app from the Shopify App Store.

Why does my printed barcode not scan?

The usual causes are printing at a scale other than 100%, a printer resolution setting that doesn't match the printer, bars printed too small for the printer, or a value too long for the label. Print at Actual size, set the right resolution, and use a wider label or a shorter value if a warning appears.

Do I need special software for my label printer?

You need the printer's normal driver so it appears as a printer on your computer. Crisp Labels gives you a PDF, which you print from your browser or PDF viewer.