How to Use Barcode Scanners to Enter Excel Data

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Scanning bar codes is a great way to reduce human error and speed up data entry tasks in your business. Scanners are reasonably affordable, and they work with any computer program, including Excel. From the perspective of your operating system (and application), a scanned bar code is just text, and it will insert the text wherever there's an active cursor.

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Step 1

Connect your barcode scanner to your computer.

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Step 2

Install any scanner software (such as a serial driver) supplied by your scanner manufacturer. If your scanner plugs into the USB port, the driver should load automatically.

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Step 3

Start Excel. Click on the cell you want the scanned data to appear in.

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Step 4

Scan a bar code; the data (numbers in most cases) will appear in the cell selected in Step 3. Your scanner may also have a pre-defined "Tab" or "Enter" bar code. Otherwise, you'll need to scan and press a key on the keyboard before scanning the next item.

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