Fixed asset labels are the physical end of the register: a tag on the asset that carries the number the register knows it by, so that a count, an issue or a disposal starts by reading the tag rather than by guessing which of six identical laptops this is. The label is not the record; it is the pointer to the record. That single idea decides what goes on it, what material it is made of and where it is fixed. This page sets out the label for the person keeping the register of a company, a school, a church or a lab, and what the register has to hold for the label to be worth printing.
What goes on the label: the asset number, a barcode of it, and the owner
The label carries the register's asset number, a barcode or QR code that encodes the same number, and the organisation's name so a finder knows whose it is. It carries nothing else that can change: not the holder, not the location, not the value. Those live on the register and are read by scanning the number. A label with the holder's name on it is wrong the day the laptop changes hands, and a label with a description is a label that has to be reprinted every time the description is corrected.
The asset number is the register's, and it never repeats
The number on the label is the register's primary key. It is issued once, in sequence, when the line is opened, and it is never reused, even after a disposal, because a reused number makes the history of two assets one history. A short prefix by class (FA for capital assets, IT for devices) helps a person read it; the barcode does not care. The register has to be the place the number is issued from, or two people will issue the same one.
Material and placement: the label has to outlive the asset's life on the books
A paper label on a laptop lasts a year; a polyester or anodised aluminium label lasts the useful life the register has assigned. Tamper-evident material that shreds on removal suits devices that leave the building. Placement is consistent by class: the same corner of every laptop lid, the same face of every cabinet, so a count is a walk rather than a search. The GS1 barcode standards describe the symbologies a printer and a scanner agree on; for an asset number, a Code 128 barcode or a QR code is the usual choice.
What the register needs before the first label is printed
A label points at a line, so the line has to exist: the asset number, the description, the serial number, the cost, the dates, the holder and the location. Printing labels for assets that are not on the register produces tags nobody can scan to anything. The fixed asset register worksheet on this site works one line's depreciation and book value; the register keeps the lines the labels point at, and a count is a scan of every label against them.
Questions people ask about fixed asset labels
What should a fixed asset label say?
The asset number the register uses, a barcode or QR code of the same number, and the organisation's name. Nothing that changes: holder, location and value belong on the register, not the tag.
What is the difference between fixed asset tags and fixed asset labels?
None in practice. Tag usually means a durable label, metal or polyester, and label can mean the printed sticker as well; both carry the same asset number and both point at the same register line.
Do all assets on the register need a fixed asset tag?
Every asset that can be tagged and counted should be: laptops, phones, furniture, machines. Software seats, leasehold improvements and vehicles with plates are on the register without a tag, and the register marks them as untaggable so a count does not look for them.
Can the asset number on the label be the serial number?
It can, but it should not. Serial numbers are the manufacturer's, vary in format, and are absent on furniture. The register's own sequential number, with the serial number recorded on the line, is the tag that works for everything the organisation owns.