Every barcode, decoded
What each symbol encodes, how it is structured, where it is used, and the mistakes that cost money. From the UPC on the pack to the QR code on the shelf, with the GS1 specification beside each one and a generator to make your own.
Why there are so many barcodes
A symbology is the rulebook a barcode follows: how its bars, spaces, or modules encode data, how much data fits, and what a scanner expects to see at each end. A UPC carries a product number and nothing else. A GS1-128 carries a lot and an expiry date as well. A QR code carries a web address. Each one exists because a different scanner, in a different place, needed to read a different thing. This guide covers the ones you will meet on a retail shipment, in a warehouse, on a bookshelf, or on a coupon, with the GS1 specification, who produces each, and where it goes wrong.
What the register reads.
The symbols a shopper’s item carries through checkout and onto a marketplace listing.
The 13-digit retail barcode scanned at point of sale everywhere outside North America, and accepted inside it.
Used for
- Consumer units at retail point of sale worldwide
- The product GTIN on Amazon, eBay, and Google Shopping listings in every region
- The barcode field on Shopify and other storefront variants
The zero-suppressed form of a UPC-A, six data digits wide, for packs too small for the full symbol.
Used for
- Small consumer units in North America: gum, cosmetics, small hardware, single-serve packs
- Any register that scans UPC-A, which expands UPC-E automatically
- Retailer item files, which store the expanded GTIN-12
What the receiving dock scans.
What the distribution center scans on the case, the carton, and the pallet, and reconciles against the ASN.
The 14-digit case barcode printed on shipping cartons, built to survive corrugated board.
Used for
- Standard trade cases that a retailer orders and receives as a unit
- Inner packs and multi-packs that are ordered but not sold at POS
- Case-level identification in retailer item setup and the 856 ASN item detail
The Code 128 subset that carries GS1 Application Identifiers, the barcode on every carton and pallet shipping label.
Used for
- The GS1 logistics label on every carton and pallet, carrying the SSCC in (00)
- Case marking with GTIN, lot, and expiry for grocery, pharma, and perishables
- FSMA 204 traceability lot codes on food cases
The 18-digit serial number that identifies one specific carton or pallet and ties it to the ASN.
Used for
- The carton and pallet shipping label every EDI retailer requires
- The MAN segment of the 856 ASN, linking each physical unit to its contents
- Scan-based receiving at the DC: one scan resolves the carton to its ASN line items
What your own scanners read.
Internal labels for bins, totes, and assets. No GS1 license required, so the format is yours to choose.
What the bookstore and the library scan.
Publishing identifiers carried in an EAN-13 so bookstores and libraries can scan them like any other product.
The book identifier, carried in an EAN-13 with a 978 or 979 prefix and an optional five-digit price add-on.
Used for
- Print books, ebooks, and audiobooks, one ISBN per edition and format
- Retail point of sale for books at any store with a register
- Amazon, Ingram, and distributor catalogs, where the ISBN is the primary key
The magazine and journal identifier, carried in an EAN-13 with a 977 prefix and a two-digit issue add-on.
Used for
- Magazines, journals, and newspapers at retail and newsstand
- Wholesaler and distributor tracking of sales and returns per issue
- Library and subscription systems, where the ISSN itself is the key
More than a number in the symbol.
Matrix and stacked symbols that hold far more than a number: URLs, lots, expiry dates, serials.
The camera-readable matrix code on packaging, and the carrier GS1 chose for 2D at point of sale.
Used for
- GS1 Digital Link QR on packaging for 2D at point of sale (Sunrise 2027)
- Consumer engagement: product information, registration, authenticity, and re-order
- Serialized units where each pack carries a unique code for traceability
GS1 data in a smaller footprint.
Compact GS1 symbols for produce, coupons, and small items where a UPC does not fit or does not say enough.
The DataBar that carries weight, price, expiry, and lot alongside the GTIN, on fresh food and coupons.
Used for
- Variable-measure fresh food: meat, cheese, deli, produce sold by weight
- Perishables where the register must read an expiry date to block sale
- Lot-level traceability on fresh items under FSMA 204
Rules layered on top of the rules.
Regulated and program-specific formats with their own rules layered on top of GS1.
The structured coupon barcode, Application Identifier (8110), carried in GS1 DataBar Expanded Stacked.
Used for
- Manufacturer coupons printed in circulars, on packs, and at shelf
- Retailer store coupons and loyalty offers
- Register validation: does the basket meet the purchase requirement before the discount applies
Barcodes, aliases, acronyms, and old names.
An alphabetical index of barcode symbologies. Alternate names, including retailer terms and older standard names, are listed and cross-referenced to the primary entry.
- (00) barcode see SSCC-18
- ABC Codabar see Codabar
- AI (8110) see GS1 North American Coupon Code
- BIPAD see ISSN
- Bookland EAN see ISBN
- Codabar Inventory & assets
- Code 2 of 7 see Codabar
- Code 3 of 9 see Code 39
- Code 39 Inventory & assets
- Code 93 Inventory & assets
- Code 128 Inventory & assets
- Code 128 (GS1) see GS1-128
- Code 128 A/B/C see Code 128
- Data Matrix 2D codes
- DataBar coupon see GS1 North American Coupon Code
- DataBar Expanded Stacked see GS1 DataBar Expanded
- DataBar Stacked see GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional
- DataBar Stacked Omnidirectional see GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional
- DataBar Truncated see GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional
- DSCSA 2D see NDC Barcode
- EAN see EAN-13
- EAN-8 Retail point of sale
- EAN-13 Retail point of sale
- EAN-13 with 977 prefix see ISSN
- EAN-13 with 978 or 979 prefix see ISBN
- EAN-13 with 979-0 prefix see ISMN
- EAN-128 see GS1-128
- ECC 200 see Data Matrix
- European Article Number see EAN-13
- GS1 coupon see GS1 North American Coupon Code
- GS1 DataBar Expanded GS1 DataBar
- GS1 DataBar Limited GS1 DataBar
- GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional GS1 DataBar
- GS1 DataMatrix see Data Matrix
- GS1 Digital Link QR see QR Code
- GS1 North American Coupon Code Healthcare & specialty
- GS1 QR Code see QR Code
- GS1-128 Cases & pallets
- GS1-128 coupon see GS1 North American Coupon Code
- GTIN for pharmaceuticals see NDC Barcode
- GTIN-8 see EAN-8
- GTIN-12 see UPC-A
- GTIN-12 (compressed) see UPC-E
- GTIN-13 see EAN-13
- GTIN-14 barcode see ITF-14
- HIBC see Code 39
- I 2/5 see Interleaved 2 of 5
- Interleaved 2 of 5 Inventory & assets
- Interleaved 2 of 5 (GS1) see ITF-14
- International Article Number see EAN-13
- International Standard Music Number see ISMN
- ISBN Books & media
- ISBN-13 see ISBN
- ISMN Books & media
- ISO/IEC 15417 see Code 128
- ISO/IEC 15438 see PDF417
- ISO/IEC 16022 see Data Matrix
- ISO/IEC 18004 see QR Code
- ISSN Books & media
- ITF see Interleaved 2 of 5
- ITF-14 Cases & pallets
- JAN-13 see EAN-13
- LOGMARS see Code 39
- MicroPDF417 see PDF417
- Monarch see Codabar
- National Drug Code see NDC Barcode
- NDC Barcode Healthcare & specialty
- NW-7 see Codabar
- pallet license plate see SSCC-18
- PDF417 2D codes
- Portable Data File 417 see PDF417
- QR Code 2D codes
- Quick Response code see QR Code
- Reduced Space Symbology see GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional
- RSS Expanded see GS1 DataBar Expanded
- RSS Limited see GS1 DataBar Limited
- RSS-14 see GS1 DataBar Omnidirectional
- SCC-14 see ITF-14
- serial barcode see ISSN
- Serial Shipping Container Code see SSCC-18
- Shipping Container Code see ITF-14
- short EAN see EAN-8
- SSCC see SSCC-18
- SSCC-18 Cases & pallets
- UCC-128 see GS1-128
- UCC/EAN-128 see GS1-128
- Universal Product Code see UPC-A
- UPC see UPC-A
- UPC coupon (number system 5) see GS1 North American Coupon Code
- UPC-A Retail point of sale
- UPC-A compressed see UPC-E
- UPC-A number system 3 see NDC Barcode
- UPC-E Retail point of sale
- USD-4 see Codabar
- USS Code 39 see Code 39
- USS Code 128 see Code 128
- USS ITF see Interleaved 2 of 5
- USS-93 see Code 93
- variable-measure barcode see GS1 DataBar Expanded
- zero-suppressed UPC see UPC-E
Where each barcode sits on a shipment
A retail shipment carries four kinds of barcode and one document that ties them together. Two of the barcodes are packaging artwork, made once. Two are generated every time a carton closes, and they have to match the document exactly.
| Level | Symbol | Identifies | Carries | Produced by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer unit | UPC-A | What the shopper buys | GTIN-12 | Packaging artwork |
| Case | ITF-14 | What the retailer orders | GTIN-14 | Packaging artwork |
| Case with lot or date | GS1-128 | What is in the case and when it expires | (01) GTIN, (10) lot, (17) expiry | Generated per shipment |
| Carton or pallet label | SSCC-18 | Which specific unit this is | (00) SSCC | Generated per shipment |
| Document | 856 ASN | What the retailer should expect on the truck | Every SSCC and GTIN above | Generated per shipment |
Frequently asked questions
Which barcode goes on the product, the case, and the pallet?
The consumer unit carries a UPC-A (or EAN-13 outside North America) with the item GTIN. The case carries an ITF-14 with the case GTIN-14, or a GS1-128 when it also needs a lot or expiry date. Every carton or pallet the retailer receives carries a GS1-128 shipping label whose (00) barcode is the SSCC, and that SSCC must appear in the 856 ASN.
Who makes each barcode, the designer or the system?
Symbols whose value never changes are artwork: the UPC on the pack and the ITF-14 on the case are generated once and printed by the packaging supplier. Symbols whose value changes per shipment are operational output: the GS1-128 label with its SSCC, lot, count, and PO is generated by the WMS, OMS, or EDI platform when the carton closes and printed at the pack station.
Do I need a GS1 membership to use these barcodes?
For anything a trading partner scans, yes. GTINs and SSCCs are built on a GS1 Company Prefix licensed to your brand, and retailers and marketplaces verify prefix ownership against the GS1 registry. Internal bin, tote, and asset labels can use plain Code 128 or Code 39 with no license.
Which barcode mistake causes the most chargebacks?
An SSCC on the carton label that does not match the SSCC in the 856 ASN. The distribution center scans the label, finds nothing to reconcile against, and receives the carton manually at the supplier’s expense. It happens whenever the label and the ASN are produced by two systems working from different data.
Definitions live in the commerce operations glossary; per-retailer labeling and ASN rules live in the EDI requirements guides.
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