Setting up a label printer and barcode scanner for your consignment store

Part 1 — The label printer

Any thermal label printer that connects to your computer with a USB cable works with Consignloop. Two good options:

• Budget pick — CLABEL 221B (~$40): a small thermal printer that connects by USB or Bluetooth and takes 2-inch label rolls.
• Easiest setup — DYMO LabelWriter 550 (~$70–80): the gold standard. Its driver installs in one click, and Consignloop has built-in tag sizes for standard DYMO labels (30252 and 30334).

Set it up (one time, ~15 minutes)

1. Load a roll of labels into the printer — it drops in like receipt paper. A good all-purpose size for clothing tags is 2" × 1", or DYMO 30334 (2¼" × 1¼").
2. Plug the printer in with the included USB cable and turn it on.
3. Install the driver — the small program that lets your computer see the printer. The quick-start sheet in the box has the download address. Run it and click through "Next" until done.
4. Confirm your computer sees it in the printer list (Windows: Start → Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers).
5. Tell Consignloop your label size: in the app, go to Settings → Store Profile → Price Tag Size and pick the preset matching your labels — or "Custom size…" and type the dimensions from the roll's packaging.
6. Print your first tag: Inventory → click the tag icon next to any item → Print. In the print window, choose your label printer, check the paper size, and print.

Your browser remembers these choices — from then on, printing a tag is two clicks.

Part 2 — The barcode scanner

Any USB barcode scanner works — there is nothing to install, ever. A scanner is really just a very fast keyboard: when it reads a barcode, it "types" the item number into the computer. Consignloop tags use CODE128, the standard every scanner reads.

• Our pick — NetumScan USB 1D handheld (~$20–25): plug-and-play, survives drops, reads even slightly wrinkled tags.
• Prefer no cable? Wireless versions (~$35) work identically via a small USB receiver.

Set it up (one time, ~5 minutes)

1. Plug the scanner into any USB port on your register computer. It beeps — that's the whole installation.
2. Test it: open Notepad, click in it, and scan a printed Consignloop tag. The item number appears, like ITM-00123.
3. That's it. There is no step 3.

Ringing up a sale (every day, ~3 seconds)

1. Open Sales → Record Sale and keep it open at the register — the cursor is already waiting.
2. Scan the item's tag. The item pops up instantly with its price filled in — including the marked-down price if it's on sale — and the store/consignor split on screen.
3. Press Enter. The sale is recorded, the item is marked sold, and the consignor's balance updates automatically.

Need a different price at the till? Click the price box and change it before pressing Enter. Scanned a tag that already sold? It finds nothing — you can't sell the same item twice by accident.

Prefer a full register? Connect Square

On the Pro plan, Consignloop integrates directly with Square POS — the free register app most small shops use for card payments. Connect your Square account once (Settings → Integrations → Connect Square) and:

• Your items sync into Square's catalog automatically, with the Consignloop item ID as the SKU — so the very same printed tags from Part 1 scan at the Square register, and the scanner from Part 2 works there too.
• Ring up the sale on Square — card payment, printed or emailed receipt, tax — and Consignloop records it within seconds: consignor split calculated, item marked sold, balances updated.
• Markdowns and refunds flow through too: items on sale ring up at the sale price, sold items leave the Square catalog instantly, and a refund at Square reverses the sale in Consignloop with a full audit note.

In short: use Consignloop's built-in register for the simplest zero-cost setup, or Square when you want integrated card payments and receipts — the hardware in this guide serves both.

Frequently asked questions