EAN barcodes (European Article Numbers) are a fundamental part of modern trade. These unique, 13-digit identifiers are used worldwide to identify products, track inventory, support sales and organise logistics. Whether you are a retailer, manufacturer or distributor, sooner or later you will probably need EAN codes. This guide explains what they are, where to buy them, which pitfalls to avoid and what can go wrong with recycled (previously used) EAN numbers.
What exactly are EAN barcodes?
An EAN barcode is a standardised, 13-digit product identifier. Its structure includes a GS1 prefix, an assigned company or product number and a check digit that helps detect scanning errors. People often refer to the first two or three digits as a “country code”, but they identify the GS1 issuing organisation, not necessarily where the product was made. EAN identifiers make inventory control more efficient, simplify checkout and help supply-chain partners exchange accurate product data. In short, they are an essential tool for modern retail.
Where can you buy EAN codes?
Before buying EAN numbers, most retailers face the same question: should I pay more for new, “official” GS1 numbers, or buy much cheaper “recycled” codes? And what could happen if I choose the cheaper option?
Let’s examine both options in more detail.
To obtain official GS1 EAN numbers for your products, you register with your local GS1 organisation. For our Slovenian business, that organisation is GS1 Slovenia.
GS1 administers a global system for assigning and managing product identifiers. When you register, your business receives a unique GS1 company prefix or another appropriate identification allocation, depending on the scheme. Your EAN numbers are then associated with your company; you can assign each number to a specific product and retain a verifiable record of that assignment.
Buying EAN codes from unauthorised resellers
It can be tempting to buy EAN numbers from third-party resellers at a fraction of the price. However, such numbers can cause a range of problems in certain circumstances — or they may be entirely adequate for your particular purpose. The distinction is important, and we will come back to it below.
Third-party numbers may not be uniquely assigned to you or registered to your company in the GS1 database. Some marketplaces, including Amazon, may require product identifiers that can be verified through GS1. Using an identifier obtained from a reseller can therefore lead to rejected product listings, removed offers or account-related complications.
In our experience, some sellers have been able to list products on Amazon using various technically valid EAN numbers, including recycled ones. Difficulties can arise if Amazon later checks those identifiers and discovers that they are not associated with the seller in GS1 records. We have particularly encountered questions around this when products were handled through Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA), where Amazon stores and dispatches the stock. Sellers handling their own fulfilment have sometimes faced fewer checks. These are our observations, not a guarantee that Amazon will accept non-GS1 numbers: its current rules and enforcement can vary.
The problem with recycled EAN numbers
A recycled EAN number has previously been assigned to another product and is subsequently reused. The main risk is that a database — such as a marketplace catalogue or a public product database — may still associate it with the original item. This can produce inaccurate product listings, inventory mismatches, picking or shipping errors and other logistical problems.
Reusing a number that belongs to an unrelated product can also undermine your brand: customers may search for your EAN online and find a completely different item instead.
If you have only a few products and need barcodes primarily for your own internal operations — such as stock records or scanning into your own warehouse system — inexpensive numbers may well be sufficient. You can allocate each number internally and keep your own mapping of identifiers to products. For that limited purpose, paying for an official GS1 allocation may not be necessary.
One place to buy recycled EAN numbers is BarcodeLove. In our own business we have used numbers from this supplier for roughly 100 products that we do not sell through Amazon, and they have worked for that internal use. We have also received the codes promptly after ordering.
Extra discount: enter the code AFH021552 when ordering from that website.
How much do official GS1 and recycled EAN codes cost?
The official GS1 pricing structure is more complicated. The applicable tariff can depend on your company’s revenue in the preceding accounting period and how many identifiers you need. The brackets are not always particularly convenient for a small business. For our Slovenian example, the relevant GS1 Slovenia membership price list is here.
When joining GS1 Slovenia, the registration or admission fee was €184.49 according to the price list available on 17 April 2023. That was a one-off initial charge, rather than a fee payable every year.
You then selected an allocation covering one, 1,000, 10,000 or 100,000 EAN numbers. Yes, even if you only needed five numbers, you might have had to reserve 1,000 — although the difference between some price brackets was not necessarily enormous.
You could determine your revenue bracket and the charge for the required number of identifiers on the official GS1 Slovenia website. Under the tariff described at that time, a smaller business needing just a few codes could expect approximately €123–€300 a year. These figures come from the Slovenian tariff dated 17 April 2023, not a current or universal GS1 price list. Check the terms that apply to your business today.
Buying recycled EAN numbers is generally faster and simpler. On BarcodeLove, choose the quantity you need — for example 5, 10, 25, 50 or 100 codes — pay, receive the numbers and assign them to products yourself. At the time of writing, 100 numbers cost around €40 as a one-off payment, considerably less than a recurring subscription. Entering the AFH021552 discount code reduced the total further. Check the current price before ordering.
Why your business might need EAN codes
There are several practical reasons to use EAN numbers in your business:
- Inventory management: EAN identifiers help you monitor stock levels, recognise when to reorder and identify slow-selling items you may want to discontinue.
- Checkout and sales: barcodes let staff scan products quickly at the point of sale, making checkout faster and reducing manual-entry errors.
- Supply-chain efficiency: identifiers support accurate information exchange between manufacturers, distributors and warehouses, including the coordination of product shipments.
- Online selling: marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay may request product identifiers when you create listings. A correctly assigned number makes products easier to identify and match across systems.
Conclusion
EAN numbers play an important role in global commerce by providing a standardised way to identify and track products. You will often hear that you must always buy your numbers from an official organisation such as GS1 to avoid problems with third-party resellers. There are genuine risks with recycled numbers, but the most useful choice still depends on what you intend to do with them.
If you plan to distribute products through other companies, retail chains or marketplaces such as Amazon, paying more for properly assigned GS1 identifiers is usually the safer route. It can prevent the listing and database conflicts described above.
On the other hand, many online retailers use EAN codes only to organise their own warehouse processes: receiving inventory, picking orders, tracking items and handling returns. For strictly internal purposes, cheaper recycled identifiers can serve that need, provided you maintain a reliable record of which number belongs to which product.
Damir Vidan
CEO, OnlySales.si