Workflows · Mobile
Barcodes
Label items with QR codes or standard barcodes, scan from your phone, and link unknown codes to items. No special hardware is required. On mobile, the camera turns into a full-screen scanner with a viewfinder overlay, and scan results open as a bottom drawer that confirms the action before committing.
Overview
Barcodes turn a phone camera into the only scanner your team needs. Print labels for items in your warehouse, then scan a code to look up the item, add it to a house, or assign the label to something new. No dedicated hardware required.
Every barcode points at one item in your inventory, but each item can carry several barcodes, useful when one piece ships with the manufacturer's tag and you also want a fresh sticker for the warehouse. Codes that aren't yet assigned still work; scanning one prompts you to link it to an existing item or create a new one on the spot.
QR codes and standard barcodes
Two formats are supported. QR codes are the default and recommended for new setups; standard barcodes match dedicated scanner hardware your team may already use.
QR Code is a 2D square that any phone camera can read, including the system camera app. Pick this if your team scans with phones, as most setups should. A printed QR label encodes a full URL, so a quick snap from the iOS or Android camera app jumps straight into Staging Assistant without first opening the app.
Standard Barcode is the traditional one-dimensional stripe pattern (Code 128). Pick this when you have an existing warehouse scanner gun or want compatibility with another system that already prints linear codes. Standard barcodes accept printable ASCII characters and need at least four characters per code.
New codes are generated in your company's label style, QR or standard barcode. Admins choose the style; existing barcodes keep theirs.
Opening the scanner
Scanning starts from one of two places: the inventory page (look up or assign any item) or a house's items page (add or check out items for that house).
The inventory page header has a Scan link that opens the scanner with no extra context. A scanned item opens over the camera; a code no item has starts the linking flow described below. From a house's items page, the equivalent is Scan Barcodes; codes you scan there add the matching item to the house instead of only opening it.
The scanner viewfinder
The scanner is full-screen so the camera fills the phone. A viewfinder overlay marks the active scan area, and a back button in the corner returns to the previous page.
Hold the phone over a label and the scanner reads QR codes and standard barcodes automatically. There's no separate format mode to switch. A QR code scans on the first read; a standard barcode scans once the camera reads it twice within a second, so hold steady on a linear label for a moment instead of sweeping past it. A short flash confirms each successful read, and the same code can't fire twice within a few seconds, so a label that stays in frame won't trigger duplicate dialogs. The first time you open the scanner, the browser asks for permission to use the camera.
What happens after a scan
The result drawer slides up from the bottom of the screen as soon as a code is read. Its contents depend on whether the code matches an item, and where you started scanning from.
When the scan resolves to a known item, the drawer shows the item's name, photo, and details. Coming from inventory Scan, Details and Edit jump to the item's full page. Coming from a house's Scan Barcodes, the drawer instead shows an Add to room selector and a quantity stepper. Tap + to set how many go on hold for that room, then tap Done.
When no item has the code, an item search opens with the scanned code shown above it. Each result carries the item's photo, name, and categories, and picking one names it on the button: Add code to Brass Floor Lamp. Tap it and the code attaches, with the camera live for the next label. Create new item swaps the search for the item form with the code already attached and a quantity of 1. Its photo square opens the camera with a shutter (Choose a photo instead reaches the photo library), and Assign code instead brings the search back. Closing the form returns to scanning with nothing saved.
The choice sticks for the run: create an item and the next unknown code opens on the create form too, so a pile of new stock is one decision followed by scanning. Opening the scanner fresh always starts on the search. More options opens the full New Item page carrying everything typed and the code; saving it, or backing out with the Scan arrow, returns to the camera. Movers get the item search only; see team for the full role rules.
Scanning many items in a row
The scan page works in two modes. Look up reads one code and opens the item it belongs to; Multi-scan keeps counting for a whole load.
Multi-scan holds a session for one house, set to Check out, Return, or Add holds. It counts the units as you scan them and keeps a running list you can review, and finishing the session writes the whole list in one go. Codes that no item carries are flagged in that list, so an unknown label doesn't stop the run and you resolve it from the list at the end.
For the checkout half of the truck-loading workflow (turning a stack of holds into checkouts), see holds and checkouts.
If the camera doesn't start
When the scanner can't get a camera picture, it shows the reason in place of the viewfinder. Each message has its own fix.
Camera access is blocked means the browser denied this site permission to use the camera. On an iPhone, tap Try Again and choose Allow if Safari asks. If it doesn't ask, open the menu in Safari's address bar and set Camera to Allow under Website Settings. The Settings app also has this switch under Safari. On Android, tap the icon next to the web address, open Permissions, and allow the camera, then tap Try Again.
Unable to open camera usually means another app is holding the camera. Close that app, then tap Try Again.
Scanning isn't supported in this browser means the browser can't run the scanner. Open Staging Assistant in a different browser, such as the phone's default browser, and scan from there.
Editing barcodes from a phone
The item detail page on mobile shows the current barcode count as a tappable button. Tapping it opens a scan-first drawer; from there you can scan a fresh code straight onto the item or jump to the full editor.
The drawer's primary action is the live camera, so the most common job (scan a new label and stick it on this item) takes a single tap and a single scan. Tap Edit Barcodes at the bottom of the drawer to open the full editor to generate, type, label, or remove codes.
What's next
Once your items are labelled, barcodes plug into the rest of the product:
- Browse the inventory page to select which items need labels, then print them from the list's Print Barcodes action with the selection carried over.
- Use holds and checkouts on mobile so movers can scan items in and out as the truck loads.
- Invite movers to your team with the Mover role, which can scan and assign codes without seeing financial fields or creating new items.