Common Barcode Types: A Comprehensive Guide to Code128, EAN, and UPC

What Is a Barcode? Why Products Cannot Do Without It

A barcode is a set of lines and spaces arranged according to specific rules. It carries the identity information of a product. Scanning devices quickly read data by detecting the width differences between black and white bars. Barcodes are the cornerstone of supply chain management and the "passport" for products to enter retail channels.

In the packaging industry, barcodes are usually printed on self-adhesive labels using thermal transfer or digital printing processes. A non-conforming barcode may cause scanning failures, affecting product warehousing and settlement. Therefore, understanding barcode types and their parameters is essential for packaging design and production.

Code128 Barcode: High Density, Full Character Set

Code128 is currently one of the most widely used barcode types. It supports digits, uppercase letters, lowercase letters, and special characters. With high encoding density, it can store more information at the same length.

Code128 has three subsets. Code128A supports uppercase letters and control characters. Code128B supports uppercase and lowercase letters and digits. Code128C supports digits only, with the highest density. In actual use, subset B is the most common.

Applicable Scenarios:

• Logistics and warehousing: express waybills, location labels
• Supply chain management: pallet codes, turnover box labels
• Asset tracking: equipment numbers, asset labels

Advantages:

• Complete character set, supporting all ASCII characters
• High encoding density, saving label space
• Built-in check digit, with a misread rate lower than one in a million

Disadvantages: Variable width—the longer the content, the wider the barcode. Strict quiet zone requirements, and printing deviations can easily cause scanning failures.

EAN-13 and UPC-A: The Universal Language of Retail Products

EAN-13 Barcode

EAN-13 is the internationally recognized retail product barcode standard. It contains 13 digits, consisting of a prefix code, manufacturer code, product code, and check digit. Chinese product barcodes start with 690 to 699 and are uniformly assigned by the China Article Numbering Center.

The first two or three digits of EAN-13 identify the country or region. The manufacturer code is 4 to 6 digits, and the product code is 3 to 5 digits. The last digit is the check digit, calculated from the first 12 digits using a fixed algorithm.

EAN-13 scanning is supported by all regular supermarkets, convenience stores, and e-commerce warehouses. It is a mandatory requirement for products to enter retail channels.

UPC-A Barcode

UPC-A is the retail barcode standard in North America. It contains 12 digits and has a structure similar to EAN-13 but with one digit fewer. After the 1990s, UPC-A can be made compatible with the EAN-13 system by adding a leading zero.

Products exported to the United States and Canada typically need to use UPC-A barcodes. However, North American retailers now fully support EAN-13 scanning, and new products can directly apply for EAN barcodes.

Other Common Barcode Types

Code39

Code39 is an early industrial barcode standard. It supports uppercase letters, digits, and some symbols. It has a low density but a low technical threshold and is still used today in industrial labels and identification cards. The U.S. Department of Defense and the automotive industry long designated Code39 as the standard barcode.

ITF-14

ITF-14 is a barcode standard used for outer packaging cartons. It consists of 14 digits and is based on the EAN-14 encoding rules. ITF-14 is printed directly on corrugated cartons, with relatively lenient requirements for printing quality. It is suitable for outer box identification in e-commerce warehouses and logistics centers.

Data Matrix and QR Code

Data Matrix is a two-dimensional barcode that can store thousands of characters in an area the size of a postage stamp. It is small in size, highly fault-tolerant, and widely used in the electronics and medical device industries. It can be directly laser-etched or dot-matrix printed on the surface of tiny parts.

QR Code is also a two-dimensional barcode that supports Chinese character encoding as well as mixed storage of digits and letters. In addition to large data capacity, QR codes support error correction, allowing reading even when partially damaged. From e-commerce logistics waybills to product traceability labels, the adoption rate of QR codes is increasing year by year.

How to Choose a Barcode Based on Business Needs

Choosing a barcode type requires evaluation from three dimensions: usage scenario, data content, and scanning environment.

Retail Products: Choose EAN-13. Whether listing on Tmall, JD.com, or supermarket shelves, EAN-13 is the standard configuration. Enterprises must first register a manufacturer code with the China Article Numbering Center.

Logistics and Warehousing: Prioritize Code128 or ITF-14. Code128 is suitable for package waybills, and ITF-14 is suitable for outer box labeling. Barcodes in logistics scenarios are mostly output by thermal transfer printing, requiring consideration of friction resistance and solvent resistance.

Industrial Parts: Choose Data Matrix. Small in size, resistant to contamination, and can be directly printed on metal or plastic surfaces. UDI labels in the pharmaceutical industry also widely use Data Matrix encoding.

Product Traceability and Marketing: Choose QR Code or self-adhesive barcode labels. QR codes can carry product traceability information, production batches, and marketing links, enabling multiple uses with one code.

Key Control Points for Barcode Printing

Barcode printing quality directly affects scanning success rates. The following four parameters need to be strictly controlled:

Dimensional Accuracy: The line width deviation of the barcode must be controlled within ±0.3mm. The magnification factor is usually selected from 0.8 to 2.0. Too small makes it difficult for scanning devices to recognize, and too large wastes label space.

Quiet Zone Requirements: Blank areas must be reserved on both sides of the barcode. The quiet zone width must be no less than 10 times the width of the narrowest barcode line. During printing, intrusion of spots, borders, or text into the quiet zone is a common cause of scanning failures.

Color Contrast: The barcode lines and background must have sufficient color difference. Dark lines on a light background is the best choice. The standard configuration is black lines on a white background. Red-light scanners cannot recognize barcodes on red backgrounds—a point often overlooked in label design.

Printing Method: Small-batch barcode labels are mostly printed with thermal transfer, while large batches use digital printing or offset printing. Digital printing requires no plate making, making it suitable for variable data and small-batch, multi-variety production modes. Lexiang Packaging's self-adhesive labels use HP Indigo digital printing equipment, achieving barcode precision of up to 600dpi.

After barcode printing is completed, it is recommended to verify the grade with a barcode verifier. The national standard GB/T 18348 stipulates that the printing quality grade of product barcodes should reach grade A or B. Below grade C, parameters must be readjusted before reprinting. For details on barcode printing quality inspection standards, refer to another article on this site.