Barcode Generator

Creating a barcode with our tool takes under a minute.

1. 1

   Enter your barcode data. Type or paste the value you want encoded into the barcode. What you enter depends on the barcode format you choose. Code 128 accepts any combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. EAN-13 requires exactly 13 digits. UPC-A requires exactly 12 digits.

2. 2

   Select your barcode format. Choose from Code 128, EAN-13, or UPC-A depending on your use case. The format guide below explains exactly which format is right for your situation.

3. 3

   Click "Generate Barcode." Your barcode appears instantly in the preview area as a clean, correctly formatted barcode image.

4. 4

   Download your barcode. Save the barcode image to your device and use it on product labels, packaging, inventory sheets, internal documents, or anywhere else you need it.

No sign-up required. No watermarks. No usage limits.

A barcode is a machine-readable representation of data. It encodes information in a visual pattern that barcode scanners and smartphone cameras can read instantly. When a scanner reads a barcode, it converts the visual pattern into the data it represents, such as a product number, a price, or an identifier.

The idea behind barcodes is to replace slow, error-prone manual data entry with fast, accurate machine reading. Instead of a cashier typing a price or a warehouse worker writing down an inventory number, a single scan accomplishes the same task in milliseconds with near-perfect accuracy.

Barcodes were first commercially used in the 1970s when Wrigley's chewing gum became one of the first products scanned at a retail checkout in 1974. Since then, barcodes have become universal in retail, logistics, healthcare, manufacturing, and virtually every industry that needs to track physical items.

Modern barcode technology has split into two main families: one-dimensional (1D) barcodes and two-dimensional (2D) barcodes. The three formats supported by Thetoolity's barcode generator, Code 128, EAN-13, and UPC-A, are all 1D barcodes. They encode data in a sequence of parallel lines of varying widths, which scanners read by measuring the pattern of light and dark bars.

Thetoolity supports the three most widely used barcode formats for product identification, retail, and general-purpose data encoding. Here is what each one does, where it is used, and when to choose it.

Code 128

Code 128 is the most versatile of the three supported formats and is often the right default choice for internal, non-retail uses.

It can encode the full set of 128 ASCII characters, which includes uppercase and lowercase letters, all ten digits, and a wide range of symbols and control characters. This makes it suitable for encoding virtually any data string, from simple numbers to complex alphanumeric identifiers.

Code 128 barcodes are used extensively in logistics and shipping (where they appear on shipping labels and parcels), warehousing and inventory management (where they identify bins, shelves, and items), healthcare (where they track specimens, medications, and patient records), and industrial and manufacturing environments (where they identify components and assets).

The format automatically selects the most efficient internal encoding based on your data content, which means Code 128 barcodes are compact and scan reliably even at small print sizes.

If you need a barcode for internal tracking, inventory labels, asset tags, or any non-retail application, Code 128 is the format to use.

EAN-13

EAN stands for European Article Number, though the format is now used globally, not just in Europe. EAN-13 is the international standard for product barcodes used in retail outside of North America.

An EAN-13 barcode always contains exactly 13 digits. The first two or three digits form the GS1 country prefix, which identifies the country in which the manufacturer registered the barcode. The next several digits identify the specific manufacturer. The remaining digits identify the specific product. The final digit is a check digit calculated from the preceding twelve digits to allow scanners to verify a successful read.

EAN-13 is used on virtually every retail product sold outside of North America: packaged food, beverages, cosmetics, books (using the ISBN system, which is based on EAN-13), electronics, household goods, and everything in between.

If you are creating barcodes for products intended for sale in markets outside of North America, or if your point-of-sale system uses EAN-13, this is the format to choose.

UPC-A

UPC stands for Universal Product Code. UPC-A is the North American retail standard, used on virtually every product sold in supermarkets, pharmacies, convenience stores, and retail chains across the United States and Canada.

A UPC-A barcode always contains exactly 12 digits. Like EAN-13, it consists of a company prefix assigned by GS1, a product identifier, and a final check digit. UPC-A can be thought of as a shortened version of EAN-13 with a leading zero omitted: a UPC-A barcode is technically identical to an EAN-13 barcode that begins with a zero, and virtually all modern retail scanners read both formats interchangeably.

If you are creating barcodes for products sold in North American retail chains, grocery stores, or through retailers that require UPC barcodes, UPC-A is the correct format.

Understanding the distinction between one-dimensional and two-dimensional barcodes helps you choose the right format for your application.

A one-dimensional (1D) barcode encodes data horizontally in a sequence of parallel bars and spaces of varying widths. The scanner reads this single row of data from left to right. Code 128, EAN-13, UPC-A, and Code 39 are all 1D barcodes. They encode a relatively small amount of data (typically up to 30 to 80 characters depending on the format) and are read by laser scanners, linear imagers, and camera-based scanners.

A two-dimensional (2D) barcode encodes data both horizontally and vertically, allowing much more information to be packed into the same physical space. QR codes and Data Matrix codes are the most common 2D barcodes. A QR code can encode up to 7,000 numeric characters or about 4,000 alphanumeric characters. 2D barcodes require image-based scanners or smartphone cameras to read, since laser scanners cannot decode the two-dimensional pattern.

Choose 1D barcodes (Code 128, EAN-13, UPC-A) when you need to encode a short product code or number and will be using standard retail or industrial scanners. Choose 2D barcodes (QR codes) when you need to encode a URL, more data than a 1D format allows, or when smartphone scanning by end users is a goal.

EAN-13 and UPC-A barcodes include a check digit as their final digit. Understanding check digits helps you avoid errors when manually entering barcode data and helps you understand how these formats verify scanning accuracy.

A check digit is a calculated value derived from the other digits in the barcode using a specific mathematical formula. When a scanner reads a barcode, it performs the same calculation on the digits it read and compares the result to the check digit in the barcode. If they match, the read is confirmed as accurate. If they do not match, the scanner knows an error occurred and can signal for a rescan.

For UPC-A, the check digit is calculated by taking the twelve digits, multiplying alternating digits by 1 and 3, summing all the products, and subtracting the total from the next multiple of 10.

Thetoolity's barcode generator automatically calculates and includes the correct check digit for EAN-13 and UPC-A barcodes. You do not need to calculate it manually. Simply enter your 12-digit UPC-A value or 12-digit EAN company and product code, and the generator appends the correct check digit.

For testing, prototyping, internal use, and development, you can generate any barcode data you like using Thetoolity's tool. However, if you plan to sell a product through a retailer that uses point-of-sale scanning, including major retailers, online marketplaces like Amazon, and grocery chains, you need an officially assigned and registered barcode.

Official UPC and EAN barcodes are assigned through GS1, the global organization that manages the barcode numbering system. GS1 assigns a unique company prefix to your business, which becomes the foundation of all your product barcodes. You then assign product numbers within your prefix range.

The process for obtaining an official barcode involves applying for a GS1 membership through your country's GS1 member organization, receiving your unique company prefix, and assigning individual product codes within your prefix for each product variant you sell.

Thetoolity's barcode generator lets you generate barcodes using your officially assigned GS1 numbers, or you can use it to generate test barcodes before your official numbers are processed.

Barcodes are used across virtually every industry and business type. Here are the most common scenarios where a free online barcode generator provides immediate value.

• Small business and e-commerce product labeling is one of the most frequent needs. When a small business launches a product and needs barcodes for packaging, inventory tracking, or sale through a marketplace, a barcode generator is the first tool they reach for.

• Inventory management and warehouse tracking relies heavily on barcodes. Items, bins, shelves, pallets, and locations all get barcode labels so that scanning updates inventory counts in real time with no manual data entry.

• Asset tracking in offices, schools, hospitals, and other organizations uses barcodes to track computers, furniture, medical equipment, and other physical assets. Each asset gets a barcode label that links to its record in an asset management system.

• Library systems use barcodes on books, media, and member cards to track checkouts, returns, and holdings.

• Event management and ticketing uses barcodes on tickets and badges for fast, accurate entry scanning at the door.

• Healthcare uses barcodes extensively on patient wristbands, medication packaging, specimen containers, and medical device labels to reduce errors and improve patient safety.

• Manufacturing and quality control uses barcodes on components, work orders, and finished goods to track production stages, batch numbers, and inspection records.

• Retail and point of sale is the original barcode use case and remains the largest. Every product on a retail shelf carries a UPC or EAN barcode that connects it to the store's pricing and inventory system.

• Document management uses barcodes on paper documents to link physical files to their digital counterparts in a document management system, enabling quick lookup and routing.

• Shipping and logistics uses Code 128 barcodes on shipping labels to track packages from origin to destination across carrier networks.

A barcode that looks correct on screen may fail to scan in the real world if it is printed incorrectly or placed poorly. Follow these best practices to ensure your barcodes are reliable.

• Use sufficient size. Barcodes that are printed too small become unreliable. For EAN-13 and UPC-A, the standard retail size is approximately 37.29mm wide by 25.93mm tall. You can scale down to about 80 percent of this size and still scan reliably on most scanners. Scaling below 80 percent of the standard size is not recommended for retail use. For Code 128, minimum bar height should be at least 15 percent of the barcode's width.

• Maintain high contrast. Black bars on a white background provide the highest contrast and the most reliable scanning. Avoid printing barcodes in light colors, on colored backgrounds, or with low-contrast color combinations. A barcode that looks fine to the human eye may fail to scan if the contrast ratio is insufficient.

• Use sufficient quiet zones. Every barcode format requires a clear white space on both sides called the quiet zone. Scanners use this blank space to identify where the barcode begins and ends. If you crop the quiet zone or print text or images too close to the barcode edge, scanners may fail to read it.

• Choose the right print resolution. Barcodes need clean, sharp edges on every bar. Low-resolution printing that produces fuzzy edges causes scan failures. Use at minimum 300 DPI for print. For thermal label printers commonly used in logistics and retail, 203 DPI is the standard minimum and 300 DPI is preferred.

• Test before deploying at scale. Always print a test barcode and scan it with the actual hardware or software you will use in your operation before printing hundreds of labels. Test with multiple scanner angles and distances to confirm reliable reads.

• Use matte paper for label printing. Glossy surfaces can cause glare that interferes with laser scanners. Matte label stock provides consistent, low-glare surfaces that scan reliably in any lighting.

• Protect barcodes from damage. On products that may be exposed to moisture, abrasion, or sunlight, use laminated or weatherproof label materials. A barcode that has been scratched, smudged, or faded may scan inconsistently or not at all.

Understanding how scanners read barcodes can help you make better decisions about barcode placement, sizing, and printing.

A laser barcode scanner emits a laser beam that sweeps across the barcode. The bars in the barcode absorb the laser light while the spaces reflect it. A light sensor in the scanner measures the pattern of light and dark reflections and converts it into a digital signal. The scanner's decoder interprets the pattern of signals against the rules of the barcode format being read and outputs the encoded data.

Camera-based imagers work differently. They capture a full image of the barcode and use image processing software to locate and decode the barcode within the image. Camera-based scanners can read 2D codes like QR codes and Data Matrix in addition to all standard 1D barcodes. Modern smartphones use this approach for QR code scanning.

Omnidirectional scanners, like the flatbed units commonly seen at supermarket checkouts, emit multiple laser beams in various directions simultaneously. This allows items to be scanned from any orientation without needing to align the barcode precisely with the scanner.

Thetoolity brings together a growing collection of free, fast, and clean online tools for businesses, developers, and anyone who needs to get things done without friction. Our barcode generator is one of many tools built to deliver professional results instantly, with no account required and no cost attached.

No subscriptions. No paywalls. No cluttered interfaces. Just tools that open instantly and work every time you need them.

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