UPC-A barcode generator
The 12-digit barcode on products in the US and Canada. Type 11 digits; we add the check digit.
11 digits (we add the check digit) or all 12.
About UPC-A
UPC-A carries a GTIN-12: a number-system digit, your GS1 company prefix, an item number and a check digit. It is read everywhere, since every EAN scanner treats it as an EAN-13 that starts with 0.
Use a number licensed from GS1 US or GS1 Canada if you sell through retailers. For internal use any 11 digits will scan.
What goes in it
- Digits
- 12 (11 + check digit)
- Characters
- 0–9 only
- Size at 100%
- 37.3 × 25.9 mm
- Related
- UPC-E is the compressed 8-digit version
Where UPC-A is used
UPC-A is the standard retail barcode in the United States and Canada, on everything from cereal boxes to hardware. Big retailers and marketplaces expect a GS1-licensed UPC on every product they stock.
The first digit says what kind of number it is: most products use 0, 1, 6, 7 or 8, a 2 marks variable-weight items labelled in store, a 3 is used for medicines and a 5 for coupons.
Printing it so it scans
Print dark bars on a white or light background; black on white is safest. Red, orange and yellow bars vanish under the red light most laser scanners use. Keep the quiet zones on both sides free of text and graphics.
Do not squash the height or crop the bars, and keep the size within the range the symbology allows. Thinner bars need more precise printing, so test small sizes first.
Send your printer SVG or PDF: they are vectors and stay sharp at any size. Before the run, scan a proof with a real scanner or a phone and check that the number it reads is right.
UPC-A questions
Both scan worldwide. Use the one your GS1 office issued; US and Canadian companies usually get UPC-A.
Yes. Put a 0 in front and the check digit stays the same.
The 12th digit is a check digit. If you type all 12 and it is wrong, we tell you instead of printing a bad code.