Where product barcode numbers come from

Many small businesses only need a SKU. You usually need GS1 numbers when a shop or marketplace you sell through asks for a GTIN, so check with the seller first. The international GS1 organisation assigns the digits used for UPC and EAN barcodes.¹

Who issues the numbers

• GS1. The international organisation hands out those digits.¹
• Your local GS1 office. GS1 can connect you with your local office.² Rules and fees may differ by country. The details below come from GS1 Australia.
• Printers and scanners draw and read the number. GS1 assigns the digits behind UPC and EAN codes.¹

How the numbers are built

• Company prefix. The GS1 Company Prefix is allocated to the member company.³
• Item reference. The Item Reference is allocated by the user company, meaning you.³
• One number per item type. Every kind of trade item gets a GTIN of its own.³

Your own SKU numbering is separate. You can run both side by side.

What it looks like in Australia

Checked 7 November 2026 on GS1 Australia's page.⁴

• Joining. To start creating barcodes, you need to become a GS1 Australia member.⁴
• How many numbers. Depending on annual turnover, you can get one barcode number or thousands.⁴
• Cost. There's an annual licence fee, renewed each July. It depends on turnover and the number of barcodes licensed.⁴ The page doesn't give one flat price, so check its fees page for the current amount.
• Other countries. GS1 says its team can connect you with your local GS1 office.² Read that office's terms, which may differ from Australia's.

Why not buy numbers from a reseller?

• Amazon says it checks. GS1 Australia quotes Amazon as saying it verifies the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database.⁴
• Its advice is to buy direct. The same quoted statement recommends obtaining UPCs directly from GS1 rather than from third parties selling UPC licences.⁴
• What GS1 says about acceptance. GS1 says that working with it means your barcodes and numbers will be accepted by major retailers and distributors worldwide.² Some retailers use other systems.¹

When you can skip it

• Your own shop, your own stock. A SKU in a barcode label is enough for scanning. Retailers can use the same EAN/UPC pattern without a GTIN for products sold only in their own stores.¹
• Reselling other makers' goods. The pack may already carry the maker's barcode. If so, scan it and store it against your own SKU.
• Sellers outside GS1. Clothing and furniture are two retail areas where some sellers skip the GS1 system.¹ Ask the buyer what they want before you pay for numbers.

Before you pay

• Write down which seller or buyer asked for a GTIN.
• Ask them whether they accept another identifier.
• Count how many item types and options you have now, and how many you may add. Each option may need its own number.
• Read your national office's fee page, and note the date you read it.
• For tax questions on the fee, ask your accountant or your tax office.

Once you have a number, common barcode types shows which symbol to print it in.