Open Create and scroll to Barcodes, or search for the format by name. Each card says what the format is for and what it accepts, such as "13 digits", so you can tell which one you need before opening it.
Always static
A barcode carries its value in the bars. It has no short link, so it can't be changed after printing, it never expires, and its scans aren't counted: a till or a scanner reads it, not a link. The form says Always static to make that clear.
Choose a format
- Retail: EAN-13, the barcode on nearly every product sold outside North America; EAN-8 for small packs; UPC-A and UPC-E in North America; ISBN for books and ISSN for periodicals; EAN-2 and EAN-5 add-ons.
- Logistics: Code 128, the general-purpose label code; GS1-128 for batch, expiry and serial numbers; ITF-14 for shipping cartons; Code 39, Code 93, Interleaved 2 of 5, Codabar and MSI Plessey.
- 2D: Data Matrix for tiny parts, PDF417, Aztec, Micro QR and rMQR.
- Postal: USPS Intelligent Mail, POSTNET, PLANET, Royal Mail RM4SCC and KIX.
- Packaging lines: Pharmacode and two-track Pharmacode.
- GS1 DataBar for loose produce and coupons.
Enter the value
Type the value in Content. It's checked as you type against the format's rules. Where a format has a check digit, it's calculated and added for you, and the screen shows which digit was added. A value the format can't hold says why, and nothing is saved until it's fixed.
Give the barcode an Internal name. Only you see it; it names the barcode in your library and isn't encoded.
Style and size
- Print width: the physical width of the printed barcode. It sets the X-dimension, the width of one bar unit, which decides whether a scanner can read it. On retail formats, the screen tells you whether the width falls within GS1's range.
- Bar height, Digits under the bars (below, above or hidden) and Digits size.
- Colours: every combination is checked for contrast, including what a red laser scanner sees. One that would fail is refused rather than drawn.
- Templates: finished looks for common uses, such as retail standard, shelf label, carton, thermal printer or book cover. A template never changes the value, and every template passes the contrast check.
Then save, and download or print a label sheet. See Managing a barcode.
Need many at once? See Bulk create from a spreadsheet.