Where do the item numbers from Quickbooks POS go in Square POS?

[sfh105]

I’ve downloaded the spreadsheet  template for Square, but I can’t figure out where my QBPOS item numbers go in the template. They aren’t barcodes, UPC codes, or otherwise GTIN. Do I have to add zeros to the item numbers to make them the right format for the GTIN column? Has anyone successfully moved their Quickbooks POS library or inventory to Square POS via the bulk import using the excel spreadsheet??? I can’t find any information on this topic. Thanks!

[Candlestore]

@sfh105;

Welcome to the Square users forum as I see this is your first post.

I used QuickBooks Desktop and when I exported my QuickBooks Items and Imported my Square Items to QuickBooks I used the GTIN or SKU number from Square as the Item Name in Quickbooks Destop.   So when I exported The items from Quick Books the Item Name showed as my GTIN; and the MPN might be either the Vendor Code or Squares SKU if I made the Item.  I also setup custom fields in QuickBooks that had SKU, and GTIN fields that could also be downloaded as a csv file from QuickBooks.  The QBPOS number might be an inhouse refrence number made by QuickBooks that Identified that item similar to Squares Token and Refrence Handle columns.  These show on an export but are not seen by users in Square.  But when I download a csv file and leave the Refrence handle and Token fields blank, Square treats these as a NEW item.  I do not suggest using the QBPOS number as a Token number, since the Upload may give an error of Item not found.  Square will try to update the QBPOS # (Square Token) as an item that was already created and can not locate the QBPOS number to Update that item.   I hope this makes sense.  My online store has an ID# similar to a QBPOS # or Token number that I do not use at all to import New items to that database.    I would suggest going to a QB's forum and asking what the number in the QBPOS column is in refrence to.  If it is as I suspect just an ID to update the correct Item in the QBPOS system you may not need to import it at all to Square.  Help in the QBPOS forum may be able to inform you of the item and we here in the Square forum can tell you (maybe) what Square uses for this field and if it is needed in Square. 

I am currently at work and my QuickBooks files are at home on another Desktop computer.  

Another thing to try is, looking at your QBPOS not the File, create a New item in the Square POS on a Tablet, Cell, or your POS hardware and then Download your Square CSV or Excel File and compare the two.  WhenThis way you know how you entered the Item in QBPOS, and in Square POS... any items you did not enter, would be system generated.  Which again is what I am thinking is the QBPOS number.

[Candlestore]

@sfh105 ;

I just got home and opened my QuickBooks Items and the Item Number is a Refrence number given by QuickBooks which is not needed in Square.   If you want to add the QBPOS number to the column of the Name of the item you can use the Concatenate function in Excel.  Here is a video of that on you tube : Concate Video .  My solution would be to delete the column of the QBPOS number if YOU do not use it at all.   If you USE it in QuickBooks POS alot and use them put it in the SKU field in Square.  The SKU is optional in Square and can be both numbers and letters upto 30 characters long I believe to be compatible with QuickBooks.   The SKU stands for Stock Keeping Unit, which is great for small retail stores to track an item that is not sold to larger retail outlets.  Which ever you decide you should be able to upload the file to Square easily then.

Hope all of this helps.

[sfh105]

Thank you, Keith! I’ll try your suggestions.

I did create an item in Square and tried using the SKU for the item number. When I scanned it in a test sale, the barcode on the price label which was generated by Quickbooks POS would not scan, so then I added zeros in front of the item number to make it a six-digit code. (The Quickbooks POS-generated price labels scan as 6 digits.)

So now I am doing that with my item numbers in the QBPOS spreadsheet, only in the ALU field temporarily before moving them to the Square spreadsheet under SKU. That will have to be the workaround, because it’s either that or it’s relabeling every item in the store after we’ve moved the catalog to Square and use the labels as Square prints them… which must have some sort of barcode and item number associated with them? How do the price labels look? Do they have generated barcodes? Numbers?

With QBPOS, we do use the item numbers to enter items into a sale. With decades of use, we memorized a lot of item numbers and just type them in quickly on the keyboard.

We have never used Quickbooks Desktop for sales, only bookkeeping. We have only ever used Quickbooks POS for sales.

thanks 

[Candlestore]

@sfh105 ;

With Square for Retail the paid plan Square can print labels with either the GTIN or SKU field as a Barcode.  I mainly use my label printers software to print my labels so I do not know how the labels look with Square printing them.  From what I see in the forum tho people complain about the labels and the size restrictions or the ability to add certain text like "On Sale" or "CloseOut" for example.  I use Zebra label printers and the zebra software that is how I print all my labels and barcodes.  I actually use 2D barcodes to save space and so they are roughly the same size barcode not matter if 10 characters or 30 characters.  

My suggestion is to have in Square (Item Name) then a space then your QBPOS #, This way you can just type in the QBPOS # and square will find the item.  So for example in your QB Pos csv file item name might be 'Keyboard' and the QBPOS # is 650532165.  In your csv file create a new column 'New Name'.  In the cell below it you want the concatenate formula from the video something like '=concatenate (A1," ", D1)'   This will give you text from cell A1 then a space then the text from cell D1.  The data in A1 would be the name of the Item 'Keyboard', and the data from D1 would be the QBPOS # of 650532165.   Then in Square Pos you can Scan a barcode that was inputted in the SKU or GTIN field or type in Keyboard or type in the QBpos # of 650532165.  As you type in the number or name, square gives you suggestions of similar data that you are entering.  Meaning if you have 5 items that start with 6505 you will get a choice of 5 items to select from but as you keep adding text the 5 items will keep dropping.   I have done the above suggested idea in my store.  I have items that come in with barcodes, but sometimes employees put a price tag over the barcode making it useless.  The tag has the name of item and a 5 or 6 digit code.  I type in the code thats on the tag, and the item is shown with its full name in my Square POS.  Most of my items we make in house so we use Square to generate a 7 digit SKU that we can scan.  

Since your items already have a Barcode on them that can be scanned.  I suggest taking 1 and using your Square system to Scan one.  This scan you can compare to see what QBPos shows and where it is.  Is it in the QBpos column, SKU column or GTIN column?  Does it have special characters in it that are not shown?  

Also if you are adding "0" or "00" to all QBPOS numbers you could do the Concatenate function as =concate("00",D1)

This would get a 00 against all text in cell D1for example.  Then copy that down as described in the video.  This is faster than hand typing them all in if you have alot of items.