Used by 700,000+ people
Free EAN-8 barcode generator.
EAN-8 carries a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN-8) on retail packs too small for an EAN-13. Type seven digits; the generator adds the check digit.
How to create an EAN-8 barcode
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01
Enter your GTIN-8
Type the first seven digits of your GTIN-8; the generator adds the check digit, or verifies it if you type all eight.
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02
Choose the module width
Set the module width (X) in whole pixels at your printer's resolution. At 300 dpi, 4 pixels give 0.339 mm and an EAN-8 27.43 mm wide with quiet zones.
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03
Download and place it
Download a PNG for labels or, with a plan, an SVG for artwork. The image includes the 7X quiet zones; keep them off seams, folds and die-cuts.
What is an EAN-8 barcode?
EAN-8 is the eight-digit barcode of the EAN/UPC family: it carries a GTIN-8 for small products scanned at the checkout. GS1 makes GTIN-8s available only for packs without room for an EAN-13, and its Member Organisations assign them individually on request. A batch or expiry date needs a second code, such as GS1 DataMatrix.
Where EAN-8 is used
GS1 Member Organisations name typical EAN-8 items: a lipstick or a box of matches (GS1 Netherlands), small cosmetics (GS1 Australia). Checkout scanners read it from any direction unless the bars are cut short.
Companies also print internal numbers as EAN-8: Restricted Circulation Numbers (RCN-8) starting with 0 or 2, two million in all, unique only inside the company. Those starting with 0, called velocity codes, are quicker to key in but can be mistaken for UPC-E numbers; GS1 then prefers 2.
Smaller than EAN-13, same checkout rule and print grade
GS1 requires one of its point-of-sale barcodes on every item scanned at a checkout. An EAN-8 meets that rule even where an EAN-13 does not fit. At nominal size the code is 26.73 mm wide with quiet zones and 18.23 mm high, against 37.29 and 22.85 mm for an EAN-13.
Print quality is graded as for EAN-13, 1.5 or better. A verifier grades a scan 0 if either EAN-8 quiet zone measures under 6.2X.
RCN-8 series, artwork files and SAP printing
For series of internal RCN-8s, sign in for free: a data sheet in the online generator turns many numbers into barcodes at once. Without an account, it makes one at a time.
Barcode Studio generates sequences or imports CSV files, and its Pro edition exports vector EPS, PDF, SVG and AI (Illustrator) in CMYK for packaging artwork. TBarCode Office takes EAN-8 data from Excel cells or Word mail merge; TBarCode/SAPwin prints it in SAP via the print control C=E8.
EAN-8 at a glance
- Specification
- GS1 General Specifications 26.0; ISO/IEC 15420
- Data
- 8 digits: GTIN-8 or RCN-8
- Check digit
- 8th digit, modulo 10 with weights 3 and 1
- X-dimension
- 0.264–0.660 mm at the checkout, 0.330 mm nominal
- Bar height
- 18.23 mm at 0.330 mm
- Quiet zones
- 7X each side, 81 modules overall
When GS1 allows a GTIN-8
GS1 authorises a GTIN-8 when one of these applies:
- The total printable area of the packaging is under 80 cm².
- The largest label is under 40 cm².
- The product is cylindrical, under 30 mm in diameter.
GS1 advises checking first with your printer whether a smaller module width, new artwork or a larger label makes room for an EAN-13, UPC-A or GS1 DataBar. Truncated bars are a last resort.
GS1 has not allowed GTIN-8 for new groupings, such as cases, since 1 January 2023.
How the eight digits are built
A GTIN-8 combines a GS1-8 Prefix, an item reference and the check digit; its first three digits show the type:
| First digits | Type of number |
|---|---|
| 100–199, 300–951, 953–976 | GTIN-8 from a GS1 Member Organisation |
| 000–099, 200–299 | RCN-8, internal to one company |
| 952 | Examples, such as 95201238 |
| 977–999 | Reserved |
Check digit of 9520123:
- Weight the digits 3, 1, 3, 1, 3, 1, 3 from the left: 27, 5, 6, 0, 3, 2, 9.
- Sum: 52.
- Next multiple of ten: 60; 60 − 52 = 8.
- Result: 95201238.
EAN-8 sizes and print checks
At the 0.264 mm checkout minimum, an EAN-8 is 21.38 mm wide with quiet zones and needs bars at least 14.58 mm high. GS1 ties this height to the module width (55.24 modules, without the digits), so check it after download.
On cylinders under 34 mm in diameter, which includes every GTIN-8 cylinder, the bars must run around the product.
Other checkout barcodes compared
Can be numbered from your own GS1 Company Prefix instead of one by one; GS1 prefers it wherever the pack has room.
Also for small packs: it compresses a GTIN-12 beginning with 0, with four or five zeros at fixed places, into six characters.
Can carry the same GTIN-8 at the checkout and needs no quiet zones.
Frequently asked questions
Learn more about EAN-8.
How do I get an EAN-8 number?
What is the difference between EAN-8 and GTIN-8?
Can I use EAN-8 in North America?
What happens to my GTIN-8 when the pack changes?
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