Barcode Classes [back] [next]
Barcode classes are based on how much and what kind of data can the barcode hold
Barcodes have three main classes:
Numeric only (linear): numbers only 0-9
Alpha-numeric (linear): These can get tricky, code 128 allows for all ASCII characters , while code 39 only allows Uppercase letters, numbers and space -, .,$, /,+, %
2-Dimensional (2D): Can hold large amounts of data of various type
When choosing a barcode, it is very important to know what type of information will be coded into the barcode and what it will be used for. There are several industry standards, requiring the use of a particular barcode. The most commonly known is the UPC barcode - to identify products for resell. ISBN is another familiar barcode used only for books and media.
Example: bar coding the SKU of a product for internal purpose (such as inventory tracking.)
First, you must know if the product SKU is numeric or alpha-numeric. If the SKU is alpha-numeric then you must find out if it has any special characters in it.
Next, if you want the barcode to contain more that one piece of data, you may need to check into a 2d barcode.
Some linear barcodes can hold more than one piece of data, but are limited to a certain number of charters.
Types of Barcodes by class
Numeric Only |
Alpha-Numeric |
2-Dimensional (2D) |
Code 11 | Codebar | QR Code |
EAN 13 | Code 128 | Aztec Code |
EAN 8 | Code 39 | Composite Code |
Industrial 2 of 5 | Code 93 | DataMatrix |
Interleaved 2 of 5 | UCC/EAN 128 | Maxicode |
Standard 2 of 5 | PDF-417 | |
Postnet | ||
UCC/EAN Shipping | ||
UPC-A | ||
UPC-E | ||