Scanner | Glide Docs

The Scanner component empowers app users to scan barcodes or QR codes and save the data in your data source. Glide partners with Dynamsoft to provide enterprise-grade scanning.

Barcode and QR code scanning is available for users with Business or Enterprise plans. Review our plans and pricing to find the best fit for you.

If you want to scan many barcodes one right after the other, we recommend the Scanner component, which keeps the user’s camera on and ready to scan. If you only need to scan one barcode at a time, the Scan Barcode or QR Code action turns on the user’s camera only when the action is triggered through a button or other trigger of your choice.

Setting up the Barcode Scanner Component

If you do not already have a column where you will store the data from barcodes or QR codes, open the Data Editor and create the column where you will store the scanned barcodes.

In the Layout Editor, select the tab you want to edit.

Click on the plus symbol in the Components panel.

Select the Scanner component.

Drag the component where you want it to appear in your app.

Under Data, select the column where you want to store the data from barcodes or QR codes.

In the Column field, choose the column you created to store the scanned barcodes.

Under Scanning Options, you can configure an action or workflow to trigger on each scan. This will use additional updates depending on which action you choose.

Dynamsoft Scanning Technology

The Scanner component and Scan Barcode or QR Code action uses Dynamsoft’s scanning technology to scan quickly and accurately at scale. Below are some supported symbologies:

Linear (1D) Barcodes
2D Barcodes, like QR codes
GS1 DataBar
Postal Codes
Patch Code
GS1 Composite Code.

You can learn more about barcode types and what Dynamsoft supports here.

Glide’s Legacy Barcode Scanner

Glide’s legacy scanner was deprecated in August 2023. Apps using our legacy scanner will still have access to the feature. If you’ve saved an action with the barcode scanner as a custom action, you will still be able to use and duplicate that action. Duplicating a button or an app that has the barcode scanner feature will also duplicate that instance of the feature.

If you are working with conditional branches and want to add your existing barcode scanner, that will no longer be possible.

Frequently Asked Questions

My team was using the legacy scanner, but we are on the Pro plan. Will my scanner continue to work now that it is on the Business plan?

Yes, the scanner will continue to work if you already added the component or action to your app. Please note that each scan will use updates.

Is there a limit to how many barcodes can be scanned by my app?

No, but each scan will use updates. If your team reaches its updates limit, you will not be able to scan until you upgrade to a plan with more updates or enable Pay-as-you-go updates.

If I had the legacy Glide scanner, will it still work?

If you have a Classic App using Glide’s legacy scanner, it will continue to work. If you are using the latest version of Glide apps, the legacy scanner has been replaced by the scanner, which uses Dynamsoft’s scanning technology.

I added the barcode scanner but the component is blank.

Make sure you have enabled camera permissions for Glide on your device. The scanner needs to access the user’s camera.