Add items and barcodes

Every item in InventoryHero can carry a barcode, and once it does, updating stock becomes a two-second scan instead of a search-and-tap. Here’s how to set items up properly.

Create an item

1. Go to Items and click New item.
2. Enter a name and, optionally, a SKU, quantity on hand, and location.
3. Save. That’s a trackable item — the barcode is optional, but you’ll want one.

Adding many items at once? Import them from a spreadsheet with CSV import rather than creating them one by one.

Attach an existing barcode

Most retail products already have a barcode printed on the packaging (usually a UPC or EAN). Use it — there’s no reason to relabel stock that’s already labeled.

1. Open the item and tap Barcode.
2. Tap Scan and point your phone camera at the product’s barcode, or type the number in.
3. Save. From now on, scanning that code anywhere in the app pulls up this item.

One item can hold multiple barcodes — useful when the same product arrives in different packaging with different codes. Scan each variant into the same item.

Generate a label instead

For items with no barcode — raw materials, house-made goods, small parts in bins — let InventoryHero create one:

1. Open the item and tap Generate barcode.
2. The app assigns a unique code to the item.
3. Print the label and stick it on the item, the bin, or the shelf edge.

Bin and shelf-edge labels are usually the practical choice for loose parts: you scan the bin, not each screw.

Scanning: camera vs Bluetooth scanner

Phone camera — built in, nothing to buy. Tap the scan icon anywhere a barcode is accepted and point the camera. It handles common 1D codes and QR codes, and it’s plenty for a few dozen scans a day.

Bluetooth scanner — worth it when scanning is constant. Pair a Bluetooth barcode scanner (Zebra and Honeywell both make good ones) with your Android phone or your computer in the device’s Bluetooth settings. It behaves like a keyboard: put the cursor in any barcode field, pull the trigger, and the code types itself in — much faster than aiming a camera all day.

Tip: test one label of each type you print before printing a hundred. A label that scans on the first try at arm’s length is a good label.

Still stuck? Create a ticket and we’ll help.