# Barcode label printing software: how to print labels > Barcode label printing software and how to print barcode labels for your shop products: what you need, the steps, common mistakes and what SellyPOS does. Source: https://sellypos.com/blog/how-to-print-barcode-labels-for-your-products/ Updated: 2026-11-03 If you want to print barcode labels for your products, you need a label printer or A4 paper, labels, a barcode scanner, and products with barcodes. This page explains how the work goes, in general terms. It also says plainly which part SellyPOS does, and in which edition. Printing barcode labels is in the Professional edition only. Scanning barcodes works in every edition, and so does making a barcode for a product that has none. Basic and Lite do not print labels. ## Why label your products Labels help the counter and the shelf in three ways. - **Scanning is usually quicker than typing.** A scan avoids the spelling and typing mistakes that a name search can cause. - **Prices match.** A label that shows the price, printed from the product itself, helps the shelf and the counter agree. - **Stock counts are quicker.** Counting by scanning, then typing only the quantity, is less work than typing every name. The [stock control page](/features/stock-control/) covers counting in more detail. Labels are one part of keeping stock accurate. [Inventory software for a small shop: what to look for](/blog/inventory-software-for-a-small-shop-what-to-look-for/) covers the rest. ## What you need - **A label printer, or A4 paper.** Labels can come from a label printer, or from a sheet of labels on A4. - **Labels that suit the printer and the product.** Choose the paper size before you design the label. - **A barcode scanner.** You use it to check the labels and to sell. - **Products with barcodes.** Each product needs one barcode, and no two products share one. ## The steps, in general terms - First, check that every product has one barcode, and that no barcode is used twice. - Next, choose the label size, and what the label shows: the name, the barcode digits and the price. - Then print one test label on plain paper or a spare label, and check it by eye. - After that, scan the test label. If it reads, print the run. - Finally, check each batch of labels against the shelf price before you stick them on. ## Use the barcode on the pack, or print your own If a product already has a barcode on its pack, use that code. The scanner then reads the same code the shop sells. A printed label is for goods that have no barcode, such as goods you pack yourself. Do not print a second code for a product that already has one. ## Common mistakes - **Labels too small.** A barcode printed too small may not scan. Check the label at its true size before the run. - **Prices that no longer match.** A label printed before a price change shows the old price. Print again after you change prices. - **One barcode on two products.** The wrong item sells when two products share a code. ## Is there free barcode label printing software? Many shopkeepers look for barcode software free download before they buy anything. A simple free label tool can print a barcode. It often does not hold your products or prices, so you may have to type each name and price again, and again when a price changes. Before you choose any tool, ask three questions. Does it print the barcode your scanner reads? Does it take the price from your product list, so the label and the shelf agree? Can you check the label at its true size before a run? Ask the same questions of a free tool and a paid one. In SellyPOS, scanning barcodes works in every edition, Lite included. Printing barcode labels is in the Professional edition only, so Lite and Basic do not print labels. ## Where SellyPOS stands - **Scanning works in every edition.** A scanned code that matches a product is added to the sale at once, with no Enter press. You can test a scanner in its own tab before your first sale. The [barcode scanning page](/features/barcode-scanning/) explains the counter side. - **Making a barcode works in every edition.** Press Generate barcode on a product's form, and the code is made from the shop's own prefix. One button can give a shop barcode to every product in the list that has none. A barcode that another product already uses is refused, and the screen names that product. - **Printing labels is Professional only.** Pick a paper and one of the ready formats. Tick what shows on the label, and check the real label at true size. Then print it to a label printer or to A4. Basic and Lite do not print labels. In Professional, a label can show a good deal of what you need: - The name, the barcode with its digits, and the price, printed for a run of products from the product list. - For a product with pack levels, the barcode and price of the level you choose. - For a variant, its full name, or only the main product's name, as the design chooses. - A size label that prints only the short code, such as M or XL. One shop can have a shirt design, a shoe design and a belt design. - A promotion label that shows the regular price struck out, the promotion price, the percentage off and the end date. - Copies taken from the stock on hand. Only products with stock are offered. The [barcodes and labels page](/features/products-and-catalogue/barcodes-and-labels/) sets out the label side. The [hardware page](/features/hardware/) lists the printers and scanners SellyPOS works with. ## Next If you need labels, check the Professional column on [the pricing page](/pricing/). Then [download SellyPOS](/download/) and test a scanner on the free edition first.