Setting Up Your Badge Label Template for Badge Printing

Setting Up Your Badge Label Template for Badge Printing


The Badge Label Designer is where you build the templates your printers use at check-in. Every event needs at least one template, and most events use a few — one default, plus variations for groups like speakers, exhibitors, or VIPs.


This article covers creating a template, editing the design, setting up a background image, printing different templates per attendee group, and adding printable images. For a refresher on the different badge types and the printers that support them, see How Badge and Lanyard Printing Works.


Contents


1. Creating a template

  1. From the Event Dashboard, navigate to OnSite > Badges & Printers > Badge Label Designer
  2. Above the table, select Create New
  3. Fill in the template details:
    1. Name — a label only you’ll see (e.g., "General Attendee", "Speaker", "Exhibitor")
    2. Default Template — sets the canvas dimensions to match your stock. See the four options below.
    3. Connected Tags — leave blank for your default template. Tags are how you route different templates to different attendee groups, covered further down.
  4. Select Create. The designer opens and you can start editing.

The four Default Template options:

  • Badge Label — Zebra printers with label rolls or Badge Sheets
  • Badge Direct Thermal — Zebra direct thermal badges
  • Ticketed Thermal Badge — Zebra direct thermal badges with tickets attached
  • Epson Colorworks Badge — Epson printers


2. Editing the design

This section covers every editing option in the designer. You’ll only need a few of them for most templates — skim and use what you need.

2.1 Adding fields

Fields are dynamic pieces of attendee data — first name, last name, organization, title, and so on.

  1. Select Field Menu in the toolbar
  2. Select the field you want to add — it will appear on the canvas
  3. Drag it to where you want it on the template

Custom Text Field is a special option — use it to combine multiple fields on one line, or to add static text that’s the same on every badge.


For self-check-in events, toggling Editable on a field allows attendees to edit that field themselves at the kiosk before printing, if Profile Edits are set to ON.

2.2 Removing fields

Select a field, then press Backspace or Delete on your keyboard.

2.3 Editing text size and alignment

  1. Select the field you want to edit
  2. Change the Font Size in the right panel (default is 20)
  3. Use the alignment icons to set placement within the text box
  4. Drag the field to move it on the canvas

To edit several fields at once, hold Shift and click each one. Shared properties appear on the right.

2.4 Resizing a text box

Select a field, then drag the edges of the box to resize. For fields that might hold longer values (last name, organization, title), make the box at least two lines tall — text scales down automatically to fit the available space.

2.5 Inverting text (for the back of folded badges)

Direct Thermal Badges are folded from the bottom, so anything printed on the back appears upside down. To fix this, select the field and toggle Invert Text.

2.6 Resizing the template

  1. Navigate to Tools > Resize
  2. Enter the new Width and Height
  3. Select Apply

We recommend keeping the default sizes — they match your stock. Only resize if you’re using Badge Sheets or have confirmed your stock dimensions differ.


3. Setting up a background image

A background image lets you see your final badge design behind your text fields while you work, so you can position everything precisely. It also shows up on the preview of the OnSite app for a cleaner attendee-facing experience.


For Epson kiosks, the background image is required and is what actually prints on the badge — Epsons print everything, including your background. For Zebra label rolls and direct thermals, the background is reference-only; your stock is pre-printed with your design.

3.1 Epson background image specs

  • Final dimensions: 4" x 12"
  • Top page on the top 6", bottom page upside down on the bottom 6", with no gap between
  • Leave ~15mm of graphic-free space at the very top and bottom to avoid overlap with hole punches

Use Photoshop, Canva, or any design tool of your choice to build this image.

3.2 Adding the background image

  1. From the Badge Label Designer, navigate to Tools > Background Image
  2. Select Choose File and upload your image
  3. Under How should we add the image to the editor, select Resize Image. This fits the image to the canvas’s dimensions.
  4. Select Import

To remove a background image, return to Tools > Background Image and select Remove.


4. Saving and testing your template

4.1 Saving

Navigate to File > Save. A green confirmation appears at the top of the screen. The designer does not auto-save — save often.

4.2 Testing the print

The best test is printing a real badge from the Dashboard:

  1. From the Event Dashboard, navigate to Attendees > Attendees
  2. Select the checkbox of a test attendee (yourself, or a dummy record)
  3. Above the table, select Actions > Print Badge
  4. Select your printer and template
  5. Leave Check In unchecked so the test doesn’t mark the attendee as checked in
  6. Select Download as PDF for a preview, or Print to send it to the printer

Check placement, sizing, and any fields that came in blank or truncated. Iterate in the designer and reprint as needed.


For setting up the physical printer and iPads, see Setting Up Your Zebra Kiosk or Setting Up Your Epson Kiosk.


5. Printing different templates for different attendee groups

Most events need more than one badge design — a different color for exhibitors, a different layout for speakers, or extra fields for VIPs. Connected Tags is the feature that handles this automatically.


When you assign a tag (like Speaker or Exhibitor) to a template, any attendee with that tag will print on that template automatically at check-in. No staff intervention needed.


You’ll always need one default template with no Connected Tags to cover any attendee who isn’t tagged. Think of it as your fallback.

5.1 Setting up a tagged template

  1. From the Badge Label Designer, select Create New (assuming your default template already exists)
  2. Fill in the template details, same as before
  3. Under Connected Tags, select one or more tags that should print on this template
  4. Select Create
  5. Edit the design, then File > Save
  6. Repeat for each attendee group that needs its own template

5.2 Connecting tagged templates to your printer

After creating tagged templates, make sure each printer is set up to use them:

  1. From the Event Dashboard, navigate to OnSite > Badges & Printers > Badge Printers
  2. Select the printer you want to assign templates to
  3. Under Templates, select your default template and any tagged templates this printer should print
  4. Select Save Changes

If a printer is connected to a tagged template but not the default, attendees without the matching tag will get an error at check-in instead of a badge. Always include the default unless you’ve deliberately set up that printer as tag-only (e.g., a dedicated Exhibitor lane).

5.3 Important: don’t assign overlapping tags

If an attendee has multiple tags that each match a different template, the system will print only one of those templates — and you cannot reliably predict which one. Set up your tags so each attendee matches exactly one tagged template (or none, falling to the default).


In practice, this means treating badge-routing tags as mutually exclusive. If an attendee is both a Speaker and an Exhibitor, decide which template they should print and tag accordingly — don’t apply both.


6. Adding printable images

If you want a graphic — a logo, sponsor mark, icon — to print on every badge, add it as an image field rather than baking it into the background.


  1. From the Badge Label Designer, select the Image icon in the toolbar
  2. In the Image Gallery, select Choose File and upload your image
  3. Select Submit
  4. Under Select From Gallery, select the image to drop it on the canvas
  5. Drag and resize as needed

Keep file size and resolution low. Large images significantly slow down print speeds, which matters when there’s a line at check-in. Use compressed formats and crop tightly.


Zebra label rolls and direct thermals print in black and white only. Bold, high-contrast icons render best. Gradients and fine color detail will look poor. For full-color designs, bake them into your badge stock before it ships, or use an Epson kiosk.


7. FAQ

Can I edit a template after I’ve started using it at the event?

Yes. Save your changes and the next badge to print will use the updated design. Badges already printed are not retroactively updated.


Why is my badge cutting off text?

The text box is likely too small for the value being printed. Make text boxes at least two lines tall for variable-length fields (last name, organization, title) — text scales automatically within the available space.


An attendee got an error: "the selected printer is not configured to print this attendee’s badge."

The printer is connected to one or more tagged templates, but doesn’t have a template that matches this attendee’s tags (or a default). Add the default template to the printer under OnSite > Badges & Printers > Badge Printers, or assign the missing tag to the attendee.


Can I print directly from the Dashboard without an iPad?

Yes — the same Attendees > Actions > Print Badge flow described under "Testing the print" works for any on-the-fly Dashboard print, not just testing.

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