13-digit barcodes: an EAN-13 guide for products, books and shops

5 min read · Updated 7 November 2026

If you're looking at a 13-digit barcode on a product, it's an EAN-13 (also called GTIN-13). It's the standard retail barcode everywhere outside North America, and North American scanners read it too.

What the 13 digits mean

• GS1 prefix (first 2 or 3 digits): the GS1 organisation that issued the number. It is not the country where the product was made.
• Company number and item reference: together they identify your company and the product. The split depends on the size of your licence.
• Check digit (last digit): calculated from the first twelve so scanners can catch misreads.

Books and magazines

Books use an EAN-13 that starts with 978 or 979: the ISBN. The ISBN generator turns an ISBN into its barcode and can add a 5-digit price add-on. Magazines and newspapers often add a 2-digit issue number.

Where to get a number

Retailers and marketplaces expect numbers licensed from GS1 to your company. Join your country's GS1 organisation and number your products from your company prefix. For items used only inside your own shop or warehouse, an internal code such as Code 128 is often simpler.

Size and printing

• The standard size is about 37.3 mm wide and 25.9 mm tall including the numbers; GS1 allows roughly 80% to 200%.
• Keep the full bar height and the blank margins: 11 modules on the left, 7 on the right.
• Dark bars on a light background. Avoid red bars, metallic inks and patterned backgrounds.
• For small packs with no room, EAN-8 exists, but it needs its own number from GS1.

Make one

Open the EAN-13 generator, type the first 12 digits and it adds the check digit (or tells you the one you typed is wrong). Choose the size, keep the numbers under the bars, and download. Every barcode is test-read as you type.

1. Get your number from GS1. Or use your ISBN for books.
2. Type the first 12 digits. The generator adds the check digit.
3. Keep the standard size and margins. Between 80% and 200%, with full bar height.
4. Print a proof and scan it. Use a till scanner or a barcode scanner app.