EAN-13 Barcode Generator

What an EAN-13 barcode is

EAN-13 stands for European Article Number, 13 digits. The standard is ISO/IEC 15420, which covers the EAN/UPC barcode symbology family. GS1, the global supply chain standards body, governs the assignment of GTIN-13 numbers through its network of national Member Organisations.

An EAN-13 barcode and a GTIN-13 are the same thing expressed differently: GTIN-13 is the data structure; EAN-13 is the barcode symbology that carries it. All retail point-of-sale scanners worldwide read EAN-13. Since the GS1 Sunrise 2005 transition, every North American POS scanner also reads EAN-13 without reconfiguration.

The 13-digit number has four logical sections. The GS1 prefix (2–3 digits, assigned by GS1 to national Member Organisations) identifies the issuing body. The company prefix (variable length, 7–12 digits combined with the GS1 prefix) identifies the brand owner. The item reference identifies the specific product. The thirteenth digit is the check digit, calculated from the first twelve.

EAN-13 technical specification

How the EAN-13 check digit is calculated

The GS1 modulo-10 algorithm applies to the first 12 digits. From left to right, multiply each digit alternately by 1 and by 3 (position 1 gets ×1, position 2 gets ×3, position 3 gets ×1, and so on). Sum all twelve products. Subtract the units digit of that sum from 10. If the result is 10, use 0 instead. That final value is the check digit.

Equivalently — and this is how the spec describes it — multiply digits at odd positions from the right by 3 and digits at even positions from the right by 1.

Worked example: calculate the check digit for 590123412345_ (underscored digit unknown).

Digits 1–12: 5 9 0 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 5

Apply weights left-to-right (×1, ×3, ×1, ×3 …):

5×1 = 5 9×3 = 27 0×1 = 0 1×3 = 3 2×1 = 2 3×3 = 9 4×1 = 4 1×3 = 3 2×1 = 2 3×3 = 9 4×1 = 4 5×3 = 15

Sum = 5 + 27 + 0 + 3 + 2 + 9 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 9 + 4 + 15 = 83

Units digit of 83 = 3. Check digit = 10 − 3 = 7.

The complete EAN-13 number is 5901234123457. You can verify this by scanning any standard barcode scanner against a symbol generated from that string — the decoder will return that 13-digit value.

Physical structure

The symbol contains 95 bar-and-space modules. From left to right: a 3-module left guard, 42 modules encoding the first six digits, a 5-module centre guard, 42 modules encoding the last six digits (including the check digit), and a 3-module right guard. The leading (leftmost) digit of the 13 is not encoded as a separate bar pattern — it is carried implicitly through the parity of the left-side character encoding.

When to use EAN-13

Retail product labelling for global markets. EAN-13 is mandatory for products sold through European, Asian, Australian and South American retail channels. It is also required for listings on Amazon (non-US marketplaces), Zalando, Otto and similar global e-commerce platforms.

Reprinting a damaged label. If a product already has a GS1-licensed GTIN-13 and the printed label is unreadable, generating a replacement barcode from the same number is the correct fix. The barcode image carries no separate licence — the number does.

Packaging artwork and pre-press. Designers creating retail packaging artwork need a correctly structured EAN-13 symbol to place in the mechanical before plates are cut. Use the generator to produce a 4096 px SVG or PNG for artwork files and verify the check digit is correct before sending to print.

Scanning-system testing. A QA technician setting up a POS scanner or a warehouse reader can generate any valid 13-digit EAN-13 and confirm the reader is decoding correctly, without affecting a live product record.

Internal inventory labelling. If you are assigning internal product codes — not GS1 GTINs — and you want to use EAN-13 format for scanner compatibility, your internal codes never enter the GS1 registry and carry no licensing requirement. Label the codes clearly as internal identifiers to avoid confusion with retail stock.

Design and print requirements

Print EAN-13 at nominal size or between 80% and 200% magnification. Below 80%, consumer scanners become unreliable. Above 200%, the symbol exceeds the space allocation on standard shelf labels.

Maintain a minimum quiet zone of 11X on the left side and 7X on the right side, where X is the width of one narrow module. Printers that bleed to the edge of a label strip these zones and cause scan failures at checkout.

Use strong contrast: dark bars on a white or light background. Avoid printing over imagery, gradients or coloured substrates without a pre-press verification scan. The GS1 General Specifications define a minimum reflectance difference between bars and spaces.

Export at 2048 px or higher for print-ready files. SVG format scales without pixel degradation and is preferred for artwork. PNG at 4096 px is suitable for standard label-printing workflows.

Troubleshooting: why your EAN-13 is not scanning

Check digit is wrong. The most common cause is a transcription error in the 12 data digits that shifts the expected check digit. Re-enter the number and let the Smart Barcode Intelligence validation flag the mismatch before export.

Quiet zones are clipped. Verify the exported image includes the full 11X left margin and 7X right margin. A label die-cut that trims close to the bars will remove the quiet zone on press.

Print resolution is too low. EAN-13 bars need to be reproduced precisely. Generating at 512 px and scaling up in a layout application introduces interpolation artefacts. Export at 2048 px minimum and place at 100% in the layout.

Substrate contrast is insufficient. A silver or metallic label reduces reflectance contrast. Test with a handheld scanner before committing to a full print run.

Symbol is too small. Below 80% magnification, narrow bars approach the minimum printable width of typical offset or inkjet presses.

Number system digit (leftmost) was omitted. EAN-13 requires all 13 digits. Entering 12 digits produces an EAN-13 with a leading zero, not the intended symbol.

EAN-13 versus UPC-A

EAN-13 and UPC-A are structurally related: a UPC-A (12-digit GTIN-12) is identical to an EAN-13 whose first digit is 0. The two encode the same data in the same physical bar pattern when the EAN-13 leading digit is zero.

If you are selling only in the United States or Canada, a UPC-A (GTIN-12) may be sufficient. If you are selling globally, or expect to expand internationally, use EAN-13 from the outset — it is accepted everywhere and avoids a format conversion later.

The GS1 licensing requirement — what a barcode generator cannot do

This is the most important section on this page.

A barcode generator produces a correctly structured, scannable symbol. It creates an image. It does not create a GTIN, and it does not give you the right to use any particular 13-digit number on retail packaging.

For products sold through retail stores, online marketplaces (Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Zalando, and others) or any GS1-connected supply chain, the number encoded in the barcode must be a GTIN that was legitimately licensed from a GS1 Member Organisation. Using a number you invented risks:

• Retailer rejection or product de-listing when GS1's Verified by GS1 registry shows no registered brand owner for that GTIN.
• GTIN collision — your invented number may already be assigned to another company's product.
• Marketplace account penalties for misrepresenting product identifiers.

GS1 US pricing (source: https://www.gs1us.org/upcs-barcodes-prefixes/what-is-a-prefix, verified 2026-06-02): a single GTIN costs $30; 10 GTINs cost $250 initial plus $50/year; 100 GTINs cost $750 initial plus $150/year. GS1 Member Organisations operate in every country — contact your local GS1 office for non-US pricing.

Legitimate uses of this generator for retail-format EAN-13 barcodes:

1. Reprinting a barcode for a GTIN you already own — the generator creates the symbol; the licence already exists.
2. Creating packaging artwork before your GS1 prefix is assigned — use a placeholder that is clearly marked for internal use only, then replace it before going to print.
3. Testing scanner compatibility in your warehouse or store setup.
4. Internal inventory codes that will never enter the GS1 supply chain.