Barcode anatomy

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How to use it

Paste or type the data a scanner returned, or scan a barcode with your camera. The tool works out what kind of data it is and explains each part. It recognizes:

• Product numbers (GTINs): UPC-A, UPC-E, EAN-13, EAN-8, ISBN, ISSN and 14-digit case numbers. You get the GS1 prefix and who issued it, a check of the check digit, and the number’s other forms.
• GS1 data: from GS1-128, GS1 DataMatrix, GS1 DataBar Expanded or GS1 QR Code, with or without brackets. Each Application Identifier is named and its value checked.
• GS1 Digital Link web addresses, read the same way.
• Passport MRZs, with every check digit verified.
• Driver’s license data from the PDF417 barcode on North American licenses.

Anything else is shown as plain text, with the barcode types that could carry it. Scanning works in any current browser, on phones and computers. When you scan or use a photo, the result also says which barcode type it was and, for a QR code, its version and error correction level.

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What the results mean

• GS1 prefix: the first three digits of a product number say which national GS1 office issued it, not where the product was made. See EAN-13.
• Check digit: a wrong check digit means a digit was misread or mistyped. See Check digits.
• Application Identifiers: see the GS1 AI table.
• A different number from the label: see Why doesn’t my scan match the number printed under the barcode?

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Privacy

Everything happens in your browser. Nothing you paste, scan or photograph is sent anywhere, and camera frames never leave your device. The first time you scan or use a photo, the page downloads the barcode reader, ZXing, from the jsDelivr CDN. That download is about 450 KB and carries none of your data.

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Parse this in your app

ZipZapKit does the same work on every scan: it validates check digits, normalizes product numbers and parses GS1 data. See GS1 Application Identifiers and Validation.