Scanning barcodes in the Shopify admin

Early access

Scanning barcodes in the Shopify admin is in early access, and is available only to certain stores.

You can scan product barcodes from any page in your Shopify admin on desktop using a barcode scanner connected to your computer. When you scan a barcode, matching products, orders, and batches are displayed, so that you can navigate to the item you need.

Barcode scanning works on the desktop admin only, and requires a physical barcode scanner that connects to your computer through USB.

Considerations for barcode scanning

Before using barcode scanning in the admin, review the following considerations:

• Only product variant barcodes can be scanned. You can't scan barcodes for orders, customers, or other resources directly.
• Barcode scanning works only on the desktop admin.
• Barcode scanning uses keystroke-based input from barcode scanners connected through USB. Camera scanners and Bluetooth scanners that don't emulate keyboard input aren't supported.
• The barcode scanner input isn't captured when your cursor is in a text field, search bar, or other input area. Click outside of any text fields before scanning.

Requirements for barcode scanning

Before you can scan barcodes in the admin, make sure that you meet the following requirements:

• You're using a desktop computer.
• You have a barcode scanner connected to your computer through USB. Camera-based scanners and Bluetooth scanners aren't supported.
• Your products have barcodes assigned to their variants. To learn how to add barcodes, refer to Editing variants for an existing product.

Scan a barcode to find a product

When you scan a barcode, the input is detected and a search is performed for matching product variants, orders, and batches.

Steps:

1. From any page in your Shopify admin, click outside of any text fields to make sure that your cursor isn't in an input field.
2. Scan a barcode with your barcode scanner.
3. Review the results:
   • Products: Matching product variants.
   • Orders: Orders that contain the matched variant.
   • Batches: Transfer batches that contain the matched variant.
4. Click a result to navigate to that item.

Note

If the scan matches exactly one product variant with no associated orders or batches, then you're taken directly to the variant details page. No results dialog is displayed.

Barcodes without matches

If a scanned barcode doesn't match any product in your store, then a Barcode not found dialog is displayed with the following options:

• Add new product — Opens the Add product page with the scanned barcode filled in, so that you can create a new product for that barcode.
• Assign barcode to existing product — Opens the Inventory page filtered to products that don't have a barcode assigned, so that you can assign the scanned barcode to an existing product.