How to Design Barcode Labels with Orca Scan's Label Designer

Tired of struggling with complicated label design software? This guide will show you how to design barcode labels effortlessly using Orca Scan’s new intuitive designer.

We’ll cover everything you need to know, from generating barcodes to customizing layouts and printing.

Say goodbye to label design headaches and hello to a streamlined, efficient process.

Open the Orca Scan Barcode Label Designer

1. Log in to your Orca Scan account
2. Select a sheet or create one if you haven’t already
3. Click on the left-hand panel called ‘Labels’

Name Your Barcode Label

1. On the left-hand panel, locate the Label name field
2. Enter a meaningful name for your label, such as “Product QR Code” or “Shipping Label”
3. Optionally, you can add a description to help your team understand its purpose

How to Design Barcode Labels: Customising Your Layout

Use the drag-and-drop functionality to create your label:

On the right-hand panel, select from the list of fields from your sheet (e.g., Barcode, Name, Job Title, etc.). Drag and drop the desired fields onto the label canvas

Customise the layout and style

Adjust Position: Select an element and drag it to your desired location on the canvas

Resize Elements: Use the handles that appear around a selected element to adjust its size

Add Elements: Use the toolbar to insert images, text, and shapes

Change Fonts and Colours

Click an element to see options in the left panel, like font style, size, text colour, and background colour

Tip: Use the rulers to align elements relative to one another. Hold Ctrl and scroll with your mouse wheel to zoom in for finer adjustments.

Printing your Barcode Labels

We currently support Avery labels which can be used with a typical office printer, Rollo Labels for use with the Rollo Wireless printer and DYMO labels for use with the DYMO LabelWriter 450 thermal printer.

To get started, first, click the sheet containing the data you’d like to print labels for and expand the ‘Labels’ tool from the left-hand panel.

Select Rows to Print: Highlight the rows containing the data you want to print

Select your preferred label design

Click Print (or Map Fields) to proceed. If your data is correctly mapped, you can print immediately. If any fields in your label aren’t linked to data in your sheet, you’ll be prompted to map them through the Map Fields menu before printing

1. Once you’re happy with your label, click print and select the label type that best matches your labels
2. If you’d like to download as PDF, click ‘Print Labels’, choose how many labels you’d like per page and click ‘download’.
3. Once you’re happy with your selection, hit print, and you’re done.

Tip: You can download barcode labels as an SVG to send to a designer or professional printer when you click ‘Download Images’.

Printing Barcodes Directly via the Orca Scan Mobile App

Open the item you’d like to print a barcode for by scrolling through your sheet on the mobile app or using the search bar.

Tip: Make sure the column (field) is set to ’Searchable in mobile’ in the web app, and if more information is needed, enable ’Show in mobile list’ for the relevant fields

To print, simply:

1. Tap the print icon next to your barcode field. If your barcode field is missing, ensure ’Hidden in mobile’ is turned off in the web app.
2. Select your preferred label design (e.g., QR Code, Code 139). If you choose a label that requires specific formatting (e.g., 12 digits), edit it via the web app
3. Choose your printer, paper size and scaling
4. When you’re happy, hit print.

How to design a label to use with our Barcode Image API

To design custom labels, use our Barcode Label Designer to create a reusable template for all your barcodes. To use this custom label with the Barcode Image API, you’ll first need to grab the labels ID. Here’s how:

1. Visit cloud.orcascan.com
2. Open the Labels tab on the left hand side
3. Click ... on the label, and press Edit
4. You can find the Label ID in the URL, in the format cloud.orcascan.com/designer/{labelID}

Once you have your label ID, you can start generating barcode images using your template via our API. Just follow these steps:

1. Visit barcode.orcascan.com/?type={labelId}
2. Enter any variables from your sheet to the label by appending &{variableName}={value}
3. Press enter to load the image
4. Right click and save the image

Tip: You can only access the label ID for labels you’ve created yourself.

Recommended Label Suppliers for Your Barcode Labels

The barcode printing feature was developed using genuine DYMO and Avery labels, so we recommend working with compatible printers, including wireless label printers for flexible deployment. Another great provider is Camcode, and you can visit their page to learn more about Camcode Durable Asset Labels. Alternatively, you can purchase Avery labels at avery.com and DYMO labels at dymo.com.

Useful Keyboard Shortcuts

Further Resources and Support for Your Barcode Label Design

• Supported Printers
• Scan barcodes directly to Excel
• Get started with the web app
• Learn about supported hardware scanners

Questions about barcode labels?

We’re always happy to help, chat with us live or drop us an email.