Retail Barcode Labels Alternative: Migrating to BarcodeMan
Shopify's Retail Barcode Labels app is a great starting point, but you hit its ceiling the first time you need a Rollo, a Zebra, a custom size, or a metafield. Here's when — and how — to switch.
Shopify’s own Retail Barcode Labels app is free, official, and a useful place to start for basic Code 128 product labels on its supported Avery, DYMO, and Zebra templates. The moment you need dimensions outside those templates, a different printer workflow, or data beyond the standard product fields, it can stop being enough. If you’re searching for a Retail Barcode Labels alternative for your Shopify store, BarcodeMan is built for those more flexible scenarios.
This guide compares the two apps honestly, shows exactly where the official one hits its ceiling, and walks through a four-step migration you can run side-by-side without disrupting the store.
What Retail Barcode Labels does well
Credit where due: Retail Barcode Labels is free, maintained by Shopify, and requires zero learning curve. If your setup is:
- One of its supported Avery, DYMO, or Zebra label templates
- Basic Code 128 product labels with standard Shopify fields
- Bulk barcode generation and printing from Shopify products
…you don’t need a different app. Keep the free one. Everything below only matters if you’ve already pressed against one of its walls.
Where it stops working
The app is narrow by design. Here are the common walls merchants hit.
| Need | Retail Barcode Labels | BarcodeMan |
|---|---|---|
| Maintained by Shopify | ✓ | — |
| Free basic label printing | ✓ | 200 labels/month |
| Avery / DYMO / Zebra presets | ✓ | ✓ |
| Rollo / Brother / custom PDF printers | Varies | ✓ |
| Exact custom dimensions in mm or inches | Limited | ✓ |
| Metafield data on labels | ✕ | ✓ |
| QR codes alongside barcodes | ✕ | ✓ |
| Scan-to-print a single label in seconds | ✕ | ✓ |
| Multi-column Avery / sheet labels | ✓ | ✓ |
Some capabilities may evolve, so verify the latest listing and test your exact label stock before switching. The common walls that push merchants toward BarcodeMan today are dimensions outside the supplied templates, printer workflows that need a custom PDF size, and metafield data on the label.
If your current pain sounds like “I have a Rollo and none of the sizes fit,” “we need to print from an order, not one SKU at a time,” or “the label needs a metafield,” you have probably outgrown the fixed workflow. Keep reading.
Four-step migration plan
You can run both apps simultaneously. There’s no uninstall-first requirement, and your products and barcodes in Shopify are the same data both apps read from.
1. Install BarcodeMan alongside Retail Barcode Labels
Two apps, one store. No conflicts, and no data migration step — both apps read your existing products and variants directly from Shopify.
2. Rebuild your current label template in BarcodeMan
Open BarcodeMan’s template editor and create a new template. Set the width and height in mm or inches to match the label you’re already printing on. Drag in a barcode element and link it to the variant’s barcode or SKU field. Add text elements for product name, price, variant, whatever your old label showed.
A typical label can usually be rebuilt in one short setup session. If your real paper size was not available in the old app, this is where that stops being a workaround.
3. Test print with the same Shopify products
Pick a product you’ve printed before. Generate a label with BarcodeMan. Compare it against the Retail Barcode Labels output for the same product. The barcode value should match exactly — both apps read the same Shopify variant record.
If the print dialog, paper size, and margins are all set correctly, the physical label should come out readable and scannable on the first try. See the printer setup guide if not.
4. Uninstall Retail Barcode Labels when you’re confident
After a week or two of parallel use, uninstall the old app. The Shopify product data stays; only the app’s stored templates go away.
What carries over and what doesn’t
Stays the same:
- All your Shopify products and variants
- The
BarcodeandSKUfields on each variant - Your Shopify POS setup and order history
- Every physical label you’ve already printed — they keep scanning
Needs redoing:
- Label template design — rebuilt manually in BarcodeMan, since DYMO presets don’t export into a portable format
- Any print history or batch counts specific to the old app
The rebuild is the only real “migration” work. Everything else is data that lives in Shopify, independent of whichever label app is asking for it.
Things to watch during the switch
- Units. If your old template was in inches and you enter mm in BarcodeMan by accident, the label is wildly the wrong size. Double-check the unit toggle.
- Barcode format. Retail Barcode Labels defaults to Code 128; BarcodeMan defaults there too. If you had switched to EAN-13 or UPC-A in the old app, set BarcodeMan to match. See the barcode format guide if you’re not sure.
- Print dialog settings. Zebra, Rollo, and Brother all have their own quirks — see the Rollo setup guide, Zebra setup guide, or Brother QL guide for your specific printer.
Frequently asked questions
Is Retail Barcode Labels being discontinued?
No. Shopify maintains it and there’s no announced sunset. The comparison here is about capability, not a shutdown timeline. (Stocky is a different story — see the Stocky shutdown guide.)
Which printers work with BarcodeMan that don’t work with Retail Barcode Labels?
Shopify’s app provides selected Avery, DYMO, and Zebra templates. BarcodeMan’s PDF workflow is useful when a Rollo, Brother, or another printer needs dimensions outside that supplied list. Confirm the exact paper size and driver settings with a test print before committing to any app.
Can I run Retail Barcode Labels and BarcodeMan at the same time?
Yes, and we recommend it for the first week or two. Test BarcodeMan against the same products and printers, then uninstall the old app once you’re confident.
Does BarcodeMan cost money?
The Free plan prints up to 200 labels per month. Pro is $7.99/month for unlimited labels, and eligible Shopify stores can use one 10-day Pro trial. See pricing for details or compare current Shopify barcode label app prices and limits.
Does BarcodeMan work with Shopify POS?
Yes. BarcodeMan generates PDFs and prints through the system print dialog, which means it works from any device that can reach Shopify POS — desktop, tablet, iPad. For the retail counter workflow, see Variant-Aware Scan-to-Print.
Will my existing label templates from Retail Barcode Labels import into BarcodeMan?
Not as a direct 1:1 import. You rebuild the template in BarcodeMan’s editor. The upside is that you can make the improvements the fixed template could not accommodate, such as a different font, a metafield, or a cleaner price block.
Start the switch
If the official app has stopped fitting your workflow, install BarcodeMan alongside it from the Shopify App Store. Use the Free plan or the one-time 10-day Shopify Pro trial, rebuild your first template, run a test batch on your actual printer, and decide from there before removing the old app.
For deeper reading on whichever printer you have, the Rollo, Zebra, and Brother QL setup guides cover the specific gotchas each brand has on Shopify.