Free tools
Free Online Barcode Generator
Easily create and print custom barcodes
Barcode Generator
Track and organize your products with unique, custom barcodes. Shopify’s online barcode generator is fast and easy to use. Simply enter your email address and the text or data you want to appear along with your barcode and click Submit. In seconds, you can generate a new barcode that you can download and print.
What is a barcode
A barcode is a machine-readable snippet of data that consists of parallel lines of varying widths and spacings. For ecommerce, barcodes identify and track products, making inventory management and ecommerce accounting more efficient. Once you scan a product’s barcode, you can access its price, description, stock levels, and more.
What are common types of barcodes
There are several types of barcodes commonly used in retail and ecommerce. Each has specific purposes and features. Some of the most common barcode types include:
UPC (Universal Product Code): Widely used in the US and Canada for retail products, UPC barcodes consist of 12 numeric digits.
EAN (European Article Number): Similar to UPC, EAN barcodes are used globally for retail products and consist of 13 numeric digits.
Code 39: Used mainly in warehousing, code 39 can encode letters and numbers.
Code 128: Used in shipping and packaging, it can encode all 128 ASCII characters, making code 128 versatile.
QR Code: Commonly used in marketing, a QR code is a two-dimensional barcode that can store more information than traditional barcodes and can be scanned using smartphones.
Why use Shopify’s free barcode generator
There are advantages to using our barcode generator, you can:
Generate individual barcodes: Get the unique barcode you need to save time during checkout, ensuring a smooth experience for your customers and your employees.
Cost-effective: Save money by generating barcodes for free instead of purchasing expensive barcode software or hardware.
Reduce errors/Increase efficiency: Decreasing the need for manual activities will reduce the amount of errors made during a transaction.
Increase customer satisfaction: Having up-to-date information about purchases means that dealing with returns can be a seamless process.
Integrate with your POS: When you use Shopify as your point of sale (POS) and inventory management systems you can easily integrate your barcode into it.
How Shopify’s barcode generator works
Go to our tool which is a free service
Enter the data you want to encode in the barcode
Enter your email address
Download the custom barcode as a PNG
Print the barcode on a label or directly on the product
What are some tips for using a barcode generator
Ensure accuracy: Double-check the information you enter into the barcode generator to avoid errors that could lead to scanning issues or incorrect product information.
Test your barcode: Before printing and applying custom barcodes to your products, test them using a barcode scanner app to ensure they work as expected.
Consider barcode size: Make sure your barcode is large enough to scan easily, and placed in a location on your product packaging that is highly visible.
Choose quality: Use a high-quality barcode printer.
FAQs
- Enter your email address
- Enter your barcode data
- Click on “Submit” to generate your barcode
That’s it! A PNG file of your barcode will arrive in your inbox and is ready to be used.
Yes. Barcodes can be read by barcode scanners all over the world regardless of where they are generated, they work much like a universal language. The one caveat is that there are actually two barcode types, but every scanner is programmed to be able to understand both.
Universal product code (UPC) barcodes can either be global EAN-13 barcodes, or US/Canada based UPC-A barcodes. The barcode image can look very similar but the barcode data inputs are different.
You can generate a barcode using a web based tool like our barcode generator on this page for free. To make a barcode, enter your email and the text or own data you want to appear when your barcode is scanned and click submit.
Once you submit you will receive an email with your custom barcode attached and linked. When you open your attachment you can scan the barcode image to see the data you entered. You can download your barcode as a PNG file.
There are two ways to generate a UPC, depending on whether you require your own identification number for your business.
If you do, you need to first obtain a paid membership with the GS1 US, a global standards organization and the official provider of UPC codes. Following that, you can purchase UPCs from them. UPCs purchased directly from GS1 US contain your own, unique identification number.
If you don’t, some companies purchase UPCs in bulk from the GS1 US and sell them to other businesses. You can get UPCs from them to save yourself the hassle and cost of paying for and joining the GS1 US.