Chuyển đổi UPC-A / UPC-E

Chuyển đổi giữa định dạng UPC-A (12 chữ số) và UPC-E (8 chữ số nén số 0). Xem mã nào đủ điều kiện nén.

Quy tắc nén số 0

Chữ số cuối UPC-E
Mẫu nhà sản xuất UPC-A
Số 0 được nén
0, 1, 2
XY000-00
Mã nhà sản xuất kết thúc bằng 000, 100, 200
3
XY300-000
Mã nhà sản xuất kết thúc bằng 00, sản phẩm 00X
4
XYZ40-000
Mã nhà sản xuất kết thúc bằng 0, sản phẩm 000X
5-9
XYZGH-0000N
Mã sản phẩm 0000N, N = 5-9

How to Use

  1. 1
    Enter the source UPC value

    Type a 12-digit UPC-A or 8-digit UPC-E number into the input field. The converter automatically detects the format based on digit count.

  2. 2
    Select the conversion direction

    Choose whether you want to convert UPC-A to UPC-E (compression) or UPC-E to UPC-A (expansion). Not all UPC-A values can be compressed to UPC-E — the converter will indicate when a value is ineligible.

  3. 3
    Copy or use the converted result

    The converted value appears along with its check digit. Use the result directly in your inventory system, label artwork, or pass it to a barcode generation tool.

About

UPC (Universal Product Code) was adopted by the US grocery industry in 1973, with the first product — a pack of Wrigley's chewing gum — scanned at a Marsh supermarket in Ohio in June 1974. The 12-digit UPC-A format remains the dominant retail barcode symbology in North America, while EAN-13 (a superset that adds a leading digit to accommodate non-US country prefixes) is used in the rest of the world. GS1 US governs UPC assignments and is responsible for allocating GS1 Company Prefixes to US brand owners.

UPC-E was designed as a zero-suppressed form of UPC-A to address the physical challenge of printing a readable barcode on very small packages such as lip balm tubes, cigarette lighters, and small confectionery items. The suppression algorithm systematically removes zeros from specific positions in the manufacturer and item number fields, encoding the result in just six data modules. The check digit is retained but recalculated for the 8-digit UPC-E format. When a scanner reads a UPC-E symbol, it performs the reverse expansion to reconstruct the full UPC-A, ensuring that the product's GTIN-12 is identical regardless of which barcode format was printed on the label.

The physical dimensions of UPC symbols are specified in GS1 General Specifications. The nominal (100% magnification) UPC-A symbol measures 37.29 mm × 25.93 mm including quiet zones. UPC-E at 100% magnification measures 22.11 mm × 21.31 mm including quiet zones, making it approximately 35% narrower than its UPC-A equivalent. GS1 permits magnification factors from 80% to 200%, but print quality at the smallest sizes requires careful attention to ink spread and substrate selection to maintain scannable bar widths.

FAQ

What is the difference between UPC-A and UPC-E?
UPC-A is the standard 12-digit barcode used on most retail products sold in North America, defined by GS1 US and encoded as a linear EAN/UPC symbol. UPC-E is a zero-suppressed version that compresses certain UPC-A values into 8 digits (6 data digits, a number system character, and a check digit), creating a smaller barcode footprint suitable for small packages. Not all UPC-A values can be zero-suppressed; only those where the manufacturer or item number contains specific patterns of consecutive zeros qualify.
Which UPC-A values can be compressed into UPC-E?
UPC-A to UPC-E compression is defined by GS1 for five zero-suppression patterns. The number system digit must be 0 or 1. The patterns are: manufacturer code ends in 000, 100, or 200 with a 2-digit item; manufacturer code ends in 00 with a 3-digit item; manufacturer code ends in 0 with a 4-digit item; and a 5-digit item where the last four digits of the item are 00005 through 00009. These rules are specified in GS1 General Specifications and ISO/IEC 15420.
Does converting UPC-A to UPC-E change what the scanner reads?
No. A scanner that decodes a UPC-E symbol always expands it back to the full 12-digit UPC-A value before returning the result to the point-of-sale application. The two formats encode the same product identifier; UPC-E is simply a space-saving representation. Product databases, GS1 registries, and POS systems work exclusively with the full 12-digit GTIN-12, so the conversion is transparent to any downstream system receiving the decoded data.
Can I use UPC-E on products sold outside North America?
UPC-E is recognized by most international scanners and retail systems, but GS1 advises using EAN-8 (the international equivalent of a short barcode) for products distributed outside North America. EAN-8 is an 8-digit symbol assigned by GS1 Member Organizations to products where a full EAN-13 is physically too large to apply. EAN-8 and UPC-E are different symbologies with different encoding rules, and while many scanners read both, EAN-8 numbers carry a global country prefix whereas UPC-E numbers are restricted to the 0- and 1-prefix UPC system.
Why is the number system digit important in UPC conversion?
The number system digit is the leftmost digit of a UPC-A barcode. For standard retail products it is 0; for variable-weight items it is 2; for pharmaceutical products it is 3; for coupons it is 5; and for specific uses defined by GS1 US, digits 1, 6, 7, 8, and 9 are allocated. UPC-E zero suppression is only defined for number system digits 0 and 1. Attempting to convert a UPC-A with a number system digit of 3, 5, or any other value to UPC-E is not valid under the GS1 specification and will produce a barcode that most scanners will not accept.