Free barcode generator: EAN-13, UPC, Code 128 and QR

How to get a barcode number in New Zealand

To sell a product through NZ retailers you need a unique GTIN, the number under the barcode. You license it from GS1 New Zealand, either as a full member or, if your turnover is under $1 million, as a one-off single-number member. Or you buy one from a barcode reseller. A free generator only draws the bars. It can't give you a valid number.

1. Count your products. Every size, flavour and pack format needs its own number. Three flavours in two sizes is six barcodes.
2. Choose where the numbers come from. The table below sets out the two routes.
3. Record which number belongs to which product. A simple spreadsheet is enough.
4. Make the barcode artwork. Do it here, or in MyGS1, where full members get 10 free barcode graphics a year.
5. Print it and check it. The sections below cover what makes a barcode scan.

On its supplier barcode page, Foodstuffs says its "preference is that all products to be allocated barcode numbers from a GS1 member organisation". It will accept other barcodes, "however suppliers must understand the risks with this", and it "reserves the right to reject product where there are barcode issues".

We're a label printer. We don't sell barcode numbers and don't earn commission from anyone who does. We checked the GS1 NZ and Foodstuffs pages above on 12 October 2026.

Launching a product? Once you have your barcode, we print the labels. Ask for a quote.

Which barcode type do you need?

Match the type to where the product is sold. Retail units in NZ and Australia use EAN-13. EAN-8 is for very small retail packs and UPC-A for US and Canadian retail; cartons and internal tracking use the rest.

2D codes are starting to appear on NZ shelves. Woolworths NZ uses GS1 DataMatrix codes on its own-brand fresh meat in North Island stores, and GS1 NZ is aiming for all NZ tills to scan QR codes powered by GS1 by the end of 2027. This tool makes plain QR and Data Matrix codes, not GS1 Digital Link codes.

Printing barcodes that scan

A barcode that looks right on screen can still fail at the till. These are the things we look for at proof stage.

• Size. The GS1 specification puts an EAN-13 at 37.29 mm wide at 100%, including quiet zones. This tool's SVG measures 37.36 × 26.36 mm at 100%, because it also counts the digits underneath. GS1 allows 80% to 200%. Keep the full bar height: GS1 allows shortened bars only on tightly curved surfaces, and then as tall as the surface allows.
• Quiet zones. Leave clear space either side of the bars, about 3.6 mm on the left and 2.3 mm on the right for an EAN-13 at 100%. Keep borders, images and text out of it. It is one of the barcode and quiet-zone checks we make at prepress.
• Colour. Use dark bars on a light background. Black on white is safest, and dark blue or dark green also work. Red, orange and yellow bars don't scan, because a red scanner light sees red, orange and yellow as white, so those bars vanish.
• Clear and metallic stock. Whatever sits behind clear film shows through the gaps between bars and cuts contrast, so print a white underprint first (see clear film labels). On metallised labels, don't let the shiny surface act as the bars or the spaces. Print both.
• Foil, emboss and gloss. Keep foil, embossing, spot UV and high-gloss laminate off the bars. They bounce light and lower contrast.
• Curved bottles. Put the barcode on the flattest part of the label and check a printed proof on the real bottle.
• Verification. GS1 NZ offers barcode verification reports, and full members get five free a year. Ask for one before a big run.

If you'd like a second pair of eyes, send us your artwork and we'll check it for free before we quote.

Print process and bar width

Ink spreads a little on press, which thickens the bars. Choosing your print process narrows the bars of EAN, UPC, Code 128 and ITF-14 codes by the amount below so they print at the right width. QR and Data Matrix codes are always drawn at their exact size.