Label Templates

Overview

Label Templates let you design reusable layouts for shelf labels and barcode labels — and pick which one to print from the inventory item screen. Each template stores its own size, fonts, and positioning, so you can have one design for tiny bin tags, another for full shelf talkers, and a third for the standard 2-inch barcode label.

A handful of starter templates ship with the system. You can clone any of them as a starting point for your own design, or start from a blank label.

How to Use

Open the editor

From the Back Office, go to Settings → Labels → Label Templates.

You'll see a card for each template. Each card shows the label name, physical size (e.g. 2 x 1″), and notes. Built-in templates have a small lock icon — you can clone them but not delete them.

Create a new template

Click New Label Template in the top right. The editor opens with a blank 2″ × 1″ label. Set the Name, adjust Width / Height / DPI if needed, and choose a Default Printer (optional).

Add elements

The right-hand panel has Add element buttons:

Text — a fixed string you type (e.g. "Cash Price")
Field — a value pulled from the inventory item: name, barcode, price, department, etc., and, with Item Attributes turned on, any of your item attributes (see "Print item attributes on a label" below).
Barcode — a scannable barcode rendered from any field (usually Barcode or Stock Number). Set Fit to Auto-fit to target and the barcode resizes itself to fit a target width, so the same template adapts when ported between label sizes.
QR — a QR code rendered from any field
Image — your logo or any uploaded PNG, JPEG, or GIF image. Click Pick an image to open the gallery; the Upload PNG button adds a new one (it accepts PNG, JPEG, and GIF files). Tip: high-contrast black-on-white prints best — Zebra label printers can't reproduce colors or fine gradients.
Line — a horizontal or vertical separator

Click an element on the canvas or in the right-side list to edit it. The properties form below the list shows its position, fonts, prefix/suffix, and so on.

Print item attributes on a label

With Enable Item Attributes on (General System Settings > Inventory), the field picker has a last category, Item attributes, with one field per attribute, such as Attribute: Region or Attribute: Proof. Add it like any other field; it also works as the source of a Barcode or QR element.

The label prints the product's value, for example "Napa Valley". An attribute with several values prints them all, separated by commas, in the order set on the Item Attributes page.
A product with no value for that attribute prints nothing there.
Renaming the attribute is safe: the template keeps printing it and the editor shows the new name.
The characters ^ and ~ in a value print as a space, because label printers treat them as commands.
Long lists: set Max chars on the field so it fits.
To preview, choose a product that has the attribute filled in under Preview with item.
If an attribute is turned off or deleted, or Item Attributes is turned off, its field shows as Attribute (unavailable) and prints blank. The template is not changed, so turning it back on brings it back.

Position and align

Each element has an X (horizontal) and Y (vertical) position in dots. At 203 dpi, 1 inch is 203 dots. You can also set Align X to Center or Right to have the element positioned automatically based on the label width — useful for item names where the text changes length.

You can drag elements directly on the canvas to reposition them. Click and hold on any element, drag it where you want, and release. The X and Y values in the properties panel update to match the new position. Hold a drag without moving (or press Esc during a drag) to cancel without changing anything.

Dragging always sets explicit X and Y values, which take precedence over Align X. If you'd rather have the element auto-aligned again, choose a non-left option from the Align X dropdown — the X field clears automatically and alignment takes back over.

Preview with a real item

The Preview with item dropdown at the top of the editor lets you swap in a real inventory item, so your layout shows realistic data lengths (long item names, prices with cents, etc.). Slide the Zoom control to inspect details at any scale.

The canvas itself shows the same image your label printer will produce — every text glyph, barcode bar, image, and line is the real printed pixel, not an approximation. As you edit, the canvas refreshes within about half a second of the change. While it's catching up, the image dims very slightly so you can see it's updating.

Click Show ZPL to see the raw printer code generated for the current layout — useful if you want to copy it elsewhere or troubleshoot with support.

The preview is generated right on this computer, so it works whether or not your store has internet access. In the rare case the canvas can't generate the exact image, it falls back to an approximate layout and shows a one-time notice — everything still works, the canvas just won't be pixel-exact.

Test print

Once you've designed something you like, click Test Print to send one label to your default printer. No need to save first — the test print uses the current in-editor state.

Save

Save Template stores your design and returns you to the list. Templates can be edited again later.

Print a label from an item

Open any inventory item that has barcode label printing enabled. You'll see a Choose Template dropdown alongside the Choose Printer and Quantity controls. Pick your template, the quantity, and the printer, then click Print Labels.

Set a printer's default template

So you don't have to pick your template every time, you can tell each label printer which template it should use by default:

Go to Settings → Labels.
Click the edit (pencil) icon on the printer you want.
In the Default Template dropdown, choose your template, then click Save Label.

From then on, whenever you select that printer on the inventory print screen (single item or bulk), the Choose Template dropdown automatically switches to its default template. You can still override it for a one-off print by changing the dropdown before clicking Print Labels. Leave it on None (built-in) to keep using the standard built-in layout.

Set a printer's resolution (DPI)

Label printers come in different resolutions — most commonly 203 or 300 dots per inch (DPI). The system needs to know yours so labels print at the right size and line up the way they look in the editor.

On the same Settings → Labels edit screen, set the DPI dropdown to match your printer, then Save Label. The dropdown starts on Default (203), which suits 203‑dpi printers. If your labels print too small, your printer is likely a 300 DPI model; set DPI to 300 and save. (If you ever see labels printing too large or running off the edge, that's the opposite mismatch — a 300‑dpi setting on a 203‑dpi printer — so set it back to 203.)

Set a printer's horizontal offset (H-Offset)

Some label printers — especially wider 4-inch models like the SNBC BTP-L540 — feed the label from the center of the print path and don't let you load it against the left edge. On those printers, a label narrower than the full print width sits away from where printing starts, so the left side of your design lands off the label. If you see the left portion of each label missing (the first letters of the item name gone, or the leading digit of the price cut off), set a horizontal offset:

Go to Settings → Labels and click the edit (pencil) icon on the printer.
In the H-Offset box, enter how many dots to shift the printing to the right, then Save Label.
Print a test label and adjust the number up or down until the design sits centered on the label.

How much to enter: the offset is in printer dots (at 203 DPI, 1 inch = 203 dots). For a center-feed printer, a good starting point is the empty space on the left in inches × your DPI. For example, a 2-inch label on a 4-inch, 203-DPI printer leaves about 1 inch on the left, so start around 200 and fine-tune. Leave it at 0 for printers that load labels against the left edge (most desktop label printers).

Detect a printer's settings automatically

If your label printer is a network (IP) printer, you don't have to figure out its DPI or label length by hand. On the Settings → Labels edit screen, click Detect from printer:

It reads the printer's DPI and sets the dropdown for you (so labels come out the right size).
It reads the label length (height) currently loaded and reports it in inches.
Review what it found, then Save Label.

Two things it can't do: it can't detect the label width — no label printer has a width sensor, so set the width on your template (the label size travels with the template). And it only works on IP printers that speak the Zebra language (like the SNBC BTP-L540); a USB printer or a receipt printer won't respond, and you'll get a "no response" message. If it can't reach the printer, double-check the IP address. If your printer's address keeps changing, reserve a static IP address for the printer in your router.

Only show templates that fit the printer

Once a printer knows its label length (from Detect from printer, or typed into the Label length box under Settings → Labels), OrderCounter can hide templates that don't fit that printer when you go to print — so you can't accidentally send a 4×6 design to a printer loaded with 2×1 labels.

It's controlled by the "Only offer templates that match the printer's label size" switch on the Settings → Labels page. Depending on when your location was set up, it may start on or off, so check the switch.
It matches on length only (there's no width sensor), and allows a little wiggle room for label-to-label variation.
Printers that don't have a detected length yet aren't affected — they still show every template.
For exceptions (say the printer reports a size that doesn't match what's loaded, or you need to force an odd size), each print screen has a "Show all sizes" checkbox that turns the filter off for that one print — no settings change needed. You can also flip the Settings → Labels switch off entirely.

Limitations

The WYSIWYG preview is generated on the back-office computer and needs no internet connection. (QR codes appear as a placeholder marker in the on-screen preview; the printed label still carries the full, scannable QR code.)
Built-in templates cannot be deleted. They can be cloned and the clone customized.
The Test Print button requires you to have at least one active label printer configured under Settings → Labels.
Only one default label printer per template. If you swap label rolls between sizes on the same printer, choose the template (and printer) at print time.
Item attribute fields print only from the redesigned Back Office and the register. The classic Back Office view prints them blank, and Soarfree digital tags don't show attributes.

FAQ

Do I have to create a template before I can print labels? No. The system ships a built-in template called Full — Dual Pricing with the standard print layout. Anyone who prints without explicitly choosing a template gets that one.

I designed my own template but my labels still print the built-in layout. Why? The Choose Template dropdown on the print screen starts on the built-in template unless you tell it otherwise. Either pick your template in the dropdown each time, or — better — set it as the printer's default under Settings → Labels (see "Set a printer's default template" above). After that, choosing that printer automatically selects your template.

My printed labels don't match the editor preview — they print too high, too small, or too large. Why? This is almost always the printer's DPI setting. Go to Settings → Labels, edit the printer, and set DPI to match your printer model (usually 203 or 300), then Save Label. With the right DPI, the printed label matches what you see in the editor.

Do I have to set the label size on the printer itself? No. Each label tells the printer its own width and length when it prints, based on the template's size. Even if the printer is set to a wider print width (common when the same printer is used for different label sizes), your template's size takes over automatically — no need to configure the print width on the printer. Two things the label can't set for you: on die-cut/gap labels the printer still senses the gap itself, so run its calibration once for a new label size; and the DPI must still match your printer (see above).

The left side of my labels is missing — the first letters or the leading price digit are cut off. Why? Some wider label printers (such as the SNBC BTP-L540) feed labels from the center of the print path and can't load a narrow label against the left edge, so printing starts to the left of the label. Set the H-Offset on that printer under Settings → Labels to shift the print to the right until it sits centered — see "Set a printer's horizontal offset" above. (This shifts where the design sits; it works together with the automatic label-size fit above, which controls the print width and length.)

Why does my attribute field print blank? Either the product has no value for that attribute (fill it in on the product's General tab), the attribute is turned off or deleted (the editor shows it as Attribute (unavailable)), or Enable Item Attributes is off.

A template shows ' instead of an apostrophe in its text or name. What do I do? Open the template, retype the apostrophe, and click Save.

Can I see the credit price on a label only when dual pricing is on? Yes. Every element has a Show if option with the choices Always, Dual pricing on, and Dual pricing off. Set the credit-price field to Dual pricing on and it will hide itself automatically when dual pricing isn't configured.

Can I add my logo to a label? Yes — add an Image element, click Pick an image, then Upload PNG. The image is converted to a 1-bit bitmap for the printer; very light grays may disappear after the threshold, so choose a high-contrast version of your logo. Max file size is 2 MB; very large images are scaled down to fit the label width.

What sizes are supported? Any size from 0.5″ × 0.5″ up to 8″ × 8″. The most common sizes for Zebra label printers are 1″ × 1″, 2″ × 1″, 2″ × 2″, and 4″ × 2″.

Can I export a template to share with another store? The list view does not have export or import buttons. Contact OrderCounter support if you want a template copied to another store.