Virtually everybody can recognize a barcode: those black and white vertical lines that help identify all sorts of products. But not all barcodes are exactly the same, or even licensed or created in the same way. In this article, we’ll dive deep into the GS1 barcode: what a GS1 barcode is and isn’t, why these barcodes matter, and what types of businesses need them.
What is a GS1 barcode?
GS1 barcodes aren’t all the same, though. The following are all GS1:
- UPC (Universal Product Code) is very common in Canada and the United States.
- EAN (European Article Number) is more common internationally.
- GS1-128 is used mainly for shipping and other logistics and always includes expiration dates and batch numbers.
While these barcodes are “different”, they all adhere to GS1 standards, are unique, and are completely traceable.
This easy, comprehensive guide will help you:
Free Ebook: The Complete Guide to Barcoding Your Inventory
What is GS1?
GS1 is a global, non-profit organization founded in the 1970s. It sets and upholds standards for good business communication, including barcodes.
What are the benefits of GS1 barcodes?
Not every business needs to utilize GS1 barcodes to barcode their inventory. That said, there are certain instances where using GS1 barcodes is essential or at least highly beneficial.
Here are the four top benefits of using GS1 barcodes:
1. GS1 barcodes are unique
Technically, any barcode generator should provide you with unique barcodes that never mix up one item with another. Still, GS1 barcodes are held to an ultra-high standard that ensures every barcode is unique and linked to a unique product from a unique company. This doesn’t just reduce the risk of confusion during inventory management—it helps stop counterfeiting and other types of fraud.
2. Some retailers require GS1 barcodes
Manufacturers supplying major retailers such as Walmart, Target, and Amazon are required to use GS1 barcodes for their products. Compliance with this standard is essential for product stocking in these retail environments. Failure to implement GS1 barcodes will prevent your products from being accepted.
3. Risk mitigation
There are certain industries where customers’ safety is of utmost importance, such as in healthcare and hospitality. For these industries, the correct GS1 barcodes can be encoded with batch numbers and expiration dates, making tracking product recalls and other health concerns easy. This granular level of information embedded within the barcode allows for more risk mitigation, preventing potentially harmful products from reaching consumers and allowing businesses to uphold stringent safety standards
4. Enhanced inventory management capabilities
While not universally essential, as some businesses effectively manage inventory with a combination of existing and software-generated barcodes, GS1 barcodes offer a significant advantage in terms of broad compatibility. As globally recognized and trusted standards, GS1 barcodes are seamlessly integrated with virtually any robust inventory management system, ensuring accurate and efficient tracking across diverse platforms.
Related: How to Generate Barcodes in Sortly
How to create a GS1 barcode
While many inventory management systems, including Sortly, allow users to generate unique and custom barcodes (and QR codes) with the click of a button, creating a GS1 barcode isn’t as simple.
To do that, your business will need to license its barcodes through its local GS1 member organization. The organization is all over the world, and has offices in many countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.
Once you’ve set up a license with the proper location, you’ll receive your GS1 company prefix. From there, you can generate unique and GS1 barcodes for your products.
Are GS1 barcodes necessary for my business?
There are many options for barcoding your inventory that do not require your business to license codes through GS1. If no rules or regulations demand that your company do so, it’s usually not necessary to use GS1 barcodes.
It’s also worth noting that many items that arrive at your business likely already have GS1 barcodes. Any good inventory management system, such as Sortly, will still allow you to use those existing barcodes to manage your inventory (though the barcodes generated in Sortly are not GS1 compliant).
But what about the other items you have on hand? Items that may have come unlabeled or that you’ve manufactured yourself? These items need barcodes, too. But unless they will be utilized in a situation where a GS1 barcode is required, you can generate a custom barcode (or QR code) using your inventory app. There is no reason to license or pay for anything extra, since these codes are unique, easy to scan, and can help you keep track of inventory just like a GS1 barcode.
Only when using a GS1 barcode is truly a best practice are there reasons to seek out a license. Otherwise, for most businesses, it’s enough to use GS1 barcodes that already exist and then use your trusted inventory management software to create and keep track of the rest.
About Sortly
Sortly is an inventory management solution that helps you track, manage, and organize your inventory from any device, in any location. We’re an easy-to-use inventory software that’s perfect for large or small businesses. Sortly builds inventory tracking seamlessly into your workday so you can save time and money, satisfy your customers, and help your business succeed.
With Sortly, you can track inventory, supplies, parts, tools, assets like equipment and machinery, and anything else that matters to your business. It comes equipped with smart features like barcoding & QR coding, low stock alerts, customizable folders, data-rich reporting, and much more. Best of all, you can update inventory right from your smartphone, whether you’re on the job, in the warehouse, or on the go.
Whether you’re just getting started with inventory management or you’re an expert looking for a more efficient solution, we can transform how your company manages inventory—so you can focus on building your business. That’s why over 15,000 businesses globally trust us as their inventory management solution.
Start your two-week free trial of Sortly today.
