Barcode
A barcode is a pattern of bars that a scanner can read, and on a product it holds the GTIN, the number printed underneath.
What it means
GS1, which sets the standards for product barcodes, describes barcodes as “symbols that can be scanned electronically using laser or image-based technology”. The familiar kind is a row of black lines and spaces of different widths, and on consumer goods it encodes the GTIN.1
The digits under the bars are the same number, written for people: GS1 calls the GTIN “the number found under a product barcode’s black and white lines”.2 In product data the word usually means that number, so a supplier’s Barcode column holds GTINs, not pictures.
Newer 2D barcodes, such as QR codes, use squares and dots instead of lines. GS1 says they can hold more data while looking smaller.1
Think of it like this
A barcode is Morse code for a number. The bars spell out the digits printed beneath them, in a form a scanner reads in a blink.
For example
Why it matters
Shops, marketplaces and Google match products by the number in the barcode. Google says “Accurate matching to products can’t be assured when GTIN is missing.”4 A barcode column that a spreadsheet has damaged breaks that matching without any warning, so keep it as text, digits only.
Not to be confused with
A barcode number is not a SKU. The barcode comes from the manufacturer and is the same in every shop, while a SKU is each shop’s own code for its stock.
Sources
- GS1. GS1 Barcodes.
- GS1 GO Customer Service Portal. What is the difference between a GTIN, barcode, EAN and UPC?.
- Shopify Help Center. Using CSV files to import and export products.
- Google Merchant Center Help. GTIN [gtin].