What is an EAN code? The complete guide for online sellers

An EAN code is a 13-digit product number, printed as a barcode, that identifies one specific trade item so that shops, warehouses and marketplaces can tell it apart from every other product. Its official name today is GTIN-13 (Global Trade Item Number, 13 digits), but almost everyone in Europe still calls it an EAN, short for the original "European Article Number".

If you sell physical products online, you will meet EAN codes sooner or later: in the listing form on bol.com or Amazon, in the "barcode" field in Shopify, in a Google Merchant Center warning, or in a question from a wholesaler. This guide explains what the number is, how it is built, where it comes from, who actually needs one, and what it does and does not do for you. It is written for online sellers, so it focuses on the practical questions rather than on the full GS1 standard.

We also cover the parts that most explainers skip: the popular myth that the first digits show the country of origin, the difference between a code licensed from GS1 and a code bought from a reseller, why owning an EAN does not stop other sellers from using your product page, and what the arrival of QR codes at the checkout (the "Sunrise 2027" goal) means for your existing barcodes.

What is an EAN code? The number and the barcode are two different things

The single most useful idea to grasp is that an EAN code has two parts that people often mix up: the number and the barcode. The number is the identifier itself, for example 8712345678906. The barcode is the pattern of black bars and white spaces that a scanner reads to get that number back. The barcode is just a way of carrying the number; the number is what matters.

In GS1's terminology the number is the GTIN, and the barcode is a "symbology" or symbol. The EAN-13 barcode is the symbol that carries a 13-digit GTIN. GS1, the non-profit organisation that runs the system, describes EAN/UPC barcodes as the oldest and most widely used GS1 barcodes, "printed on virtually every consumer product in the world" (GS1).

This distinction has a direct practical consequence:

• You can make the barcode image yourself, for free. Any barcode generator, label program or design tool can turn a 13-digit number into an EAN-13 barcode. There is nothing to buy for the image.
• You cannot make up the number. The number has to be unique worldwide and properly allocated. If you invent one, you risk picking a number that already belongs to someone else's product, which leads to rejected listings, wrong product pages and disputes. Even Shopify's guide on EANs warns that generating your own numbers is risky because of duplicates, while "the barcode image itself can be created without issue".

So when people say they "need an EAN code", they almost always mean they need a number. Once you have the number, printing the barcode is a design task.

What an EAN code is used for

An EAN tells every system in the supply chain "this is exactly this product". At a supermarket checkout, the scanner reads the EAN and the till looks up the price. In a warehouse, staff scan the EAN to pick and count stock. On a marketplace, the EAN is the key that links your offer to a product page: on bol.com and Kaufland, for example, all sellers of the same item are grouped on one page per EAN. In Google Shopping, the GTIN helps Google match your product to the right catalogue entry.

Note what the EAN does not contain: no price, no product name, no weight, no manufacturer address. It is a key, not a database record. The information about the product lives in the systems that use the key, such as a shop's till, a marketplace catalogue or GS1's own registry.

What does EAN stand for, and is an EAN the same as a GTIN?

EAN originally stood for European Article Number. The system later went global, and the number was renamed GTIN-13 in 2009. In everyday language the old name stuck, so "EAN", "EAN-13", "EAN number", "EAN code" and "GTIN-13" all mean the same 13-digit identifier.

GTIN is the umbrella term for GS1's family of item numbers. It comes in four lengths:

Identifier	Digits	Common name	Typical use
GTIN-13	13	EAN-13, EAN	Consumer products sold outside North America
GTIN-12	12	UPC-A, UPC	Consumer products in the US and Canada
GTIN-8	8	EAN-8	Very small packs with little room for a barcode
GTIN-14	14	Often carried in ITF-14	Cases and outer cartons, not individual consumer units

Google Merchant Center accepts all four lengths in its gtin attribute and lists "EAN (GTIN-13): 13 digits" explicitly (Google Merchant Center Help, GTIN). A UPC-A written with a leading zero becomes a valid 13-digit GTIN, which is why North American codes often appear in European systems starting with 0.

Books are a special case. They use an ISBN, which sits in the reserved "Bookland" prefixes 978 and 979, and ISBNs are issued by national ISBN agencies rather than by GS1 or by barcode resellers. Magazines and other serials use an ISSN in prefix 977.

Several other codes you will meet as an online seller are not GTINs at all. The ASIN is Amazon's internal catalogue number, the FNSKU is Amazon's warehouse label for FBA stock, the SKU is your own stock code, and the MPN is a manufacturer part number. Google explicitly tells sellers not to put SKUs in the GTIN field. For a side-by-side explanation of all these identifiers, see our article on EAN vs UPC vs GTIN vs ISBN.

How is an EAN-13 code built? Prefix, company number, item reference and check digit

An EAN-13 looks like a random string of digits, but it has a clear structure. Reading from left to right, it consists of:

1. The GS1 prefix (2 or 3 digits). This shows which national GS1 office issued the company number. For example, 870 to 879 is GS1 Netherlands, 400 to 440 is GS1 Germany, 300 to 379 is GS1 France, 500 to 509 is GS1 UK, 800 to 839 is GS1 Italy and 840 to 849 is GS1 Spain (GS1 Company Prefix list). Codes from GS1 US start with 0 or 1.
2. The rest of the company number. Together with the prefix, this forms the "GS1 Company Prefix", which is usually 7 to 10 digits long and is licensed to one company.
3. The item reference. The company fills in these digits itself, one value per product or variant.
4. The check digit (1 digit). The last digit is calculated from the other twelve and lets scanners catch reading errors.

Why the length of the company prefix matters

The company prefix and the item reference share 12 digits, so a longer company prefix leaves fewer digits for items. GS1 Germany's price list shows this neatly: a 9-digit base number gives room for 1,000 GTINs, an 8-digit one for 10,000 and a 7-digit one for 100,000. A small brand with a few dozen products gets a long prefix; a multinational with tens of thousands of products gets a short one.

Here is how an illustrative number breaks down. Take 8712345678906 (an example used only to show the arithmetic, not a real product):

Part	Digits in the example	Meaning
GS1 prefix	871	Issued in the range of GS1 Netherlands
Rest of company prefix	2345 (if the company prefix were 7 digits)	Identifies the licence holder
Item reference	67890	One specific product chosen by the licence holder
Check digit	6	Calculated from the first 12 digits

You cannot see from the number alone where the company prefix ends and the item reference begins, because prefixes have different lengths. Only GS1's registry knows that split.

How the check digit works

The check digit is calculated with a simple rule published by GS1 (GS1, how to calculate a check digit manually). Take the first 12 digits, multiply them alternately by 1 and 3 starting from the left, add up the results, and find the number you need to reach the next multiple of 10. If the sum is already a multiple of 10, the check digit is 0.

For our example 871234567890:

• 8×1 + 7×3 + 1×1 + 2×3 + 3×1 + 4×3 + 5×1 + 6×3 + 7×1 + 8×3 + 9×1 + 0×3
• = 8 + 21 + 1 + 6 + 3 + 12 + 5 + 18 + 7 + 24 + 9 + 0 = 114
• The next multiple of 10 is 120, so the check digit is 120 − 114 = 6, giving 8712345678906.

GS1's own example works the same way: 629104150021 gives a weighted sum of 57, so the check digit is 3 and the full GTIN is 6291041500213. You can try any number in the calculator below.

For the full method, including how the weights work for 8, 12 and 14-digit GTINs, read EAN check digit explained, with a free calculator.

Does the barcode prefix show the country of origin?

No. This is the most widespread myth about EAN codes, and you will still find it in social media posts and even some shop advice: "if the barcode starts with 87, the product is from the Netherlands" or "690 means it was made in China". It is not true.

GS1 states plainly that prefixes "do not identify the country of origin for a given product". The prefix only tells you which national GS1 office issued the company prefix to the brand owner. A Dutch brand that has its products made in Portugal, Vietnam and Poland will normally use the same 87-prefix on all of them. A Chinese factory producing for that Dutch brand does not change the barcode. And a company registered with GS1 in one country can sell its products anywhere in the world under the same codes.

A few practical consequences for sellers:

• Do not use the prefix to answer customer questions about origin. Country of origin belongs on the label, in your product data and on customs paperwork, not in the barcode.
• Do not judge a supplier by the prefix. A prefix from one country says nothing about quality or authenticity.
• The prefix does not show where the seller is based either. A reseller code that starts with 0 is not "American" in any meaningful sense for your product. It simply comes from a number range originally issued by GS1 US.

Ranges that are never normal product codes

Some prefixes are reserved for special purposes and should never appear on an ordinary product sold online. GS1 reserves 020 to 029 and 200 to 299 for in-store use such as variable-weight items and store codes, 040 to 049 for company-internal use, 977 for ISSN, 978 and 979 for ISBN, 980 for refund receipts, 981 to 983 and 99 for coupons. Google Merchant Center rejects GTINs with the restricted prefixes 02, 04 and 2 and the coupon prefixes 05, 98 and 99, as well as 981 to 984. If you ever receive codes in one of these ranges for normal products, something is wrong.

Where do EAN codes come from? GS1, licences and resellers

Many sellers assume EAN codes are handed out by a government body, which is why people in several countries talk about "applying for" an EAN. In reality there is no law that requires a product to carry an EAN, and a GTIN is not a trademark or a form of intellectual property. The requirements come from contracts and platform rules: GS1's licence terms, marketplace policies and retailer specifications.

There are three ways sellers end up with EAN numbers.

1. A licence from your national GS1 organisation

GS1 calls itself "the only official provider of GS1 GTINs and EAN/UPC barcodes globally" (GS1, get barcodes). You join the GS1 Member Organisation in your country and receive a licence to a company prefix or to a set of individual GTINs. The brand owner is normally responsible for allocating the GTINs to its products.

Two features of the GS1 route matter for small sellers:

• It is usually a recurring cost. In 2026 a micro-business pays roughly €60 to €130 a year for 10 to 100 codes in the Netherlands, Germany and the UK, and about €220 to €410 in the first year in France, Spain and Italy, where there is an entry fee but the number of codes is effectively unlimited. GS1 Nederland, for example, charges €61 a year for a package of 10 codes plus a turnover-based contribution that starts at €28 a year; GS1 UK charges £50 a year for 10 GTINs for businesses with a turnover below £100,000. Prices change, so check your national GS1 site.
• The right to use the numbers depends on the licence. GS1 licences are personal and cannot be transferred. GS1 Germany's terms say that on termination the customer must no longer use the numbers, and GS1 UK says that if you cancel "you will no longer have access to your GS1 GTINs". The numbers do not technically stop working, but the right to use them ends.

In return you get the strongest form of EAN: the code appears in GS1's registry under your company name, and the marketplaces and retailers that check GS1 data will see your company as the owner.

2. Codes bought from a reseller

A second market exists for EAN and UPC numbers sold outside GS1 membership. Its origin is usually traced to the United States. The Uniform Code Council (UCC, now GS1 US) originally sold company prefixes for a one-off fee, and its certificates did not restrict transfers. In August 2002 the UCC changed its contract to forbid selling, sharing, leasing, sub-dividing or re-selling prefixes. Sellers argue that prefixes issued before that change can still be sub-divided, and many resellers sell numbers from such older prefixes. The details of this history come from commercial sources and are disputed, but it explains why the reseller market exists at all.

GS1 does not support resellers. GS1 Australia says it "has no relationship with these resellers" and that buyers act "at your own risk". GS1 Netherlands says such codes "cannot be registered in the global register". The practical effect is this: when you look up a reseller code in GS1's database (Verified by GS1, formerly GEPIR), it shows the original licence holder of the prefix, or no data at all, not the company that bought it.

GTINcodes.com is a reseller of this kind. Since 2018 it has supplied valid EAN-13 numbers from its own stock, issued once and registered to the buyer in the GTINcodes register, where anyone can check them. That register is separate from GS1's. It records who bought a number from GTINcodes.com and when; it is not a GS1 membership and it does not put your company name into Verified by GS1. Whether that is good enough depends entirely on where you sell, which is the subject of the next section.

3. No EAN at all

The third option is often overlooked: for some products and channels you do not need an EAN. Amazon has a GTIN exemption for private-label, unbranded and handmade products. Google Shopping says that products without a GTIN do not need one and lets you set identifier_exists to false when there is truly no GTIN, MPN or brand. eBay accepts a "Does not apply" value in many categories. Your own webshop never requires one.

Our article How to get EAN codes: GS1 membership vs buying from a reseller compares the three options in detail, with 2026 GS1 prices per country.

Can I just make up my own EAN code?

Technically you can type any 12 digits and add a correct check digit. In practice it is a bad idea. You have no way of knowing whether that number already belongs to another product somewhere in the world, and marketplaces keep the link between a GTIN and a product for a long time. An invented number can attach your offer to a stranger's product page, trigger "EAN already in use" errors, or get your listings removed for false product identification. Google says it directly: "Do not make up or create new GTINs."

Do you need an EAN code? A channel-by-channel overview

Whether you need an EAN, and what kind, depends on where you sell. The table below summarises the situation as of October 2026. Channel rules change, so treat it as a starting point and check the current seller help pages before you list.

Channel	EAN needed?	Must it be GS1-licensed to you?	Notes
Amazon	Yes in most categories, unless you have a GTIN exemption or use Brand Registry	Effectively yes for branded listings	Amazon checks codes against GS1 data; mismatches cause errors such as 5461
bol.com	Yes (EAN or ISBN)	Yes for branded items; for unbranded items bol says it does "not yet enforce" this	One shared product page per EAN; other sellers can compete for the buy box
Google Shopping	Recommended when the product has one; not for shop brands and private label	Not documented	Brand + MPN and identifier_exists are legitimate alternatives
eBay	In many categories; "Does not apply" accepted	No documented check	Product identifiers required in many categories since 2015/2016
Kaufland	Yes	No published GS1-only rule found	One product page per EAN
Cdiscount	Yes for new products since 2021	Not documented	Each colour needs its own EAN
Zalando	Yes, per size and colour	Treat as yes	Rejection guidance asks for a GS1-registered EAN-13
Etsy	Generally not for handmade and vintage	No	Mainly relevant for Etsy's Google Shopping ads
Own webshop (Shopify, WooCommerce)	No	No	Useful for Google feeds, stock control and future marketplaces
Supermarkets and retail chains	Yes	Yes, plus product data in GS1 data pools	Codes not registered to you are rejected

Amazon

Amazon's long-standing policy says it verifies "the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database" and that codes that do not match GS1's information "will be considered invalid". In practice, Amazon compares the brand you enter with the company that holds the GS1 licence for the prefix. For branded products, a reseller code will show a different company and is likely to fail. The realistic routes for a brand are GS1 codes, the GTIN exemption, or Brand Registry with a registered or pending trademark. Sellers report that unbranded "Generic" listings have worked with non-GS1 codes, but that is anecdotal and carries risk. See EAN codes for Amazon for the exemption step by step.

bol.com

bol.com's partner platform says: "For branded items, it is mandatory to use an EAN registered with GS1", and "Currently, we do not yet enforce unregistered EANs for unbranded items" (bol.com partner platform, checked October 2026). Some third parties claim bol has started to check unbranded items too; bol's own page did not say so when we checked. bol also recommends buying from GS1 directly. The details, including "EAN already in use" errors, are in EAN codes for bol.com.

Google Shopping

Google marks GTIN as "Recommended" for products that have a manufacturer-assigned GTIN, and says that products without one do not need one. If you are the only seller of a product or it is your shop brand, Google says it "generally won't have a GTIN"; you then submit brand and MPN instead. If you do provide a GTIN, it must be correct, with a valid check digit and no restricted prefix, and every colour or size variant needs its own. Read GTIN for Google Shopping for when to use identifier_exists.

Shops and supermarkets

If you plan to supply physical retail, the answer is simple: get GS1 membership. GS1 UK warns that in retail "the GTIN will be checked and your products will be rejected" if it is not registered to you, and chains usually also expect your product data in a GS1 data pool. A reseller code is the wrong tool here.

What an EAN code does not do: no trademark, no exclusivity, no proof of quality

Many sellers expect an EAN to protect their product. It does not, and understanding why will save you frustration later.

An EAN is not a trademark

A GTIN is an identifier, not a form of intellectual property. Owning the number gives you no legal right to stop others from selling the same product. A Dutch court (Rechtbank Den Haag, 2022, a case about a unicorn plush toy) rejected a claim against another seller who used the same EAN, partly because bol.com's terms require sellers of identical products to use the same EAN. A different Dutch case, about counterfeit bedding, did find infringement, but because the goods were fake, not because of the EAN itself. Protection comes from a registered trademark, precise product content and good evidence.

An EAN does not give you a private product page

On catalogue marketplaces, one EAN means one product page, shared by everyone who sells that item. bol.com says that "you may not offer identical items under different EANs… Not even from different seller accounts", and that other partners may sell identical items on the same EAN and compete for the buy box. Kaufland works the same way. So if a competitor sells exactly the same item as you, they are allowed, and in fact required, to use the same page.

What you can act on is a seller who attaches a different product to your EAN, for example a cheaper copy. That is a matter to report to the marketplace with evidence. On Amazon the main tool against such "hijackers" is Brand Registry. Our guide to proving EAN ownership and handling disputes walks through the evidence that works.

An EAN does not certify the product

The barcode says nothing about safety, quality, authenticity or compliance with EU product rules. Marketplaces ask separately for manufacturer details, safety information and other data. A product with a perfectly valid EAN can still be removed if that other information is missing.

Where an EAN does help you

None of this makes the EAN unimportant. A unique, correctly used EAN means your offers land on the right product page, your stock can be scanned and counted, your Google feed matches the right product, and you avoid the duplicates that cause most listing problems. The main risk with cheap codes is not a legal one; it is that the same number was sold to more than one buyer. That is why a supplier that issues each number only once and keeps a register of who bought it is worth more than a spreadsheet of numbers from an unknown source.

Where to find an EAN code and how to check who it belongs to

Finding the EAN on a product

On a consumer product the EAN is printed under the barcode as 13 digits, usually on the back or the bottom of the pack. The first digit sits to the left of the bars, and the other twelve are split into two groups of six beneath them. In Shopify the number lives in the variant's barcode field; on marketplaces it appears in the product details or in your seller catalogue export. If you buy stock from a wholesaler or brand, the EAN is normally listed on the price list or product data sheet.

A few things to look out for when you copy an EAN into a system:

• Spreadsheets often turn long numbers into scientific notation (8.71235E+12) or drop a leading zero. Format the column as text before you paste.
• A 12-digit UPC can go into a 13-digit field by adding a leading zero. Do not add or remove digits anywhere else.
• Spaces and hyphens printed under the barcode are not part of the number.

Checking a code in GS1's registry

Verified by GS1 (gepir.gs1.org now redirects there) lets you search a GTIN and see which company licensed the number from GS1, plus a few core product attributes if the owner uploaded them. It is the tool marketplaces and retailers rely on. For a GS1 member, it shows their own company. For a reseller code, it shows the original prefix holder or no product data, not the buyer. Know this before you buy, so it does not come as a surprise when a marketplace or customer checks.

Checking a code in the GTINcodes register

Every code sold through GTINcodes.com's shops is recorded against the buyer in the GTINcodes register, and anyone can look it up on the GTINcodes check page. The check shows whether a number is in the GTINcodes register. With a protection plan, the page shows the buyer's company name, and Premium adds the product name and brand per code. Protected customers can also download a registration certificate as evidence of when they bought and registered the codes. That certificate is useful with competitors and with platforms that do not check GS1 data, but it is not a GS1 registration, and marketplaces that check GS1 will not treat it as one. The protection plans page lists what each plan includes.

Check who an EAN code is registered toCheck owner

Checking before you print

Whichever source your codes come from, a short check before you print packaging or create listings prevents most problems: confirm the check digit, confirm the prefix is not a restricted range, look the number up in Verified by GS1 and in the source's own register, and search the marketplaces you sell on to make sure the number is not already attached to another product.

How many EAN codes do you need? Variants, bundles and product changes

The basic rule is one EAN per distinct sellable item. Every variant that a customer can choose separately needs its own number: each size, each colour, each flavour, each scent. GS1 Nederland gives a simple example: socks in black and white, each in three sizes, need 6 codes; if you also sell 3-packs of each, that is 6 more, 12 in total. Google, Zalando, Cdiscount and Amazon all follow the same principle.

Here is a worked example for a small online shop:

Product line	Variants	Codes needed
Scented candle	4 scents × 2 sizes	8
Candle gift set	1 fixed set of 3 candles	1
Wick trimmer	2 colours	2
Refill wax	1 size	1
Total		12

A bundle or multipack is a different trade item from the single product, so it gets its own code, and changing what is in a bundle means a new code. Other changes can also require a new GTIN under GS1's GTIN Management Standard: a change in declared net content (500 g to 450 g, for example), a change in dimensions of 20% or more, a new primary brand, or adding or removing a certification mark such as an organic logo. Minor changes, such as a refreshed design with the same contents, normally keep the same GTIN.

Equally important: never reuse a GTIN for a different product. Since January 2019 GS1's rule is that a GTIN allocated to a trade item "shall not be reallocated to another trade item" (GS1 support). Marketplaces keep old links between numbers and products for years, so a reused code can resurrect an old product page with the wrong photos and reviews.

When you plan a range, add a buffer for new variants and bundles you will launch in the next year. For the full set of change rules and more worked cases, see Variants, bundles and product changes: when do you need a new EAN?

Printing an EAN barcode: the essentials

Once you have the number, you need a barcode that scanners can read. A few rules cover most cases:

• Size. The nominal (100%) EAN-13 is about 37.29 mm wide and 25.93 mm high including the digits. GS1 Netherlands gives a range of 80% to 200% for barcodes scanned at retail. Staying around 100% to 120% gives a good margin.
• Height. Do not cut off the bars to save space. GS1 says truncation "is not permitted" in EAN/UPC specifications and it lowers scan rates.
• Quiet zones. Leave a clear light area on both sides of the bars, with no text or graphics in it.
• Colours. Dark bars on a light background, ideally black on white. Avoid red or reddish bars, because scanners use red light; light bars on a dark background cannot be read.
• Placement. Never across an edge, fold, flap or seam. On curved surfaces such as bottles, you may need to rotate the barcode so it stays readable.

If you print labels at home or on a small label printer, test-scan a few with a phone app or a handheld scanner before printing a full run. Low-resolution printers struggle near the minimum size. The barcode printing guide covers sizes, X-dimension, colours and verification in more depth.

Will QR codes replace the EAN barcode? 2D barcodes and Sunrise 2027

You may have read that the classic barcode is on its way out. The reality is more gradual. "Sunrise 2027" is a GS1-led industry goal for checkout systems worldwide to be able to scan 2D barcodes, such as GS1 DataMatrix and QR codes carrying GS1 Digital Link, by the end of 2027. It is a readiness milestone for retailers, not a mandate for brands. Amazon, which has joined GS1 as a solution partner, puts it this way: "By the end of 2027, retail point-of-sale (POS) systems globally will support 2D barcodes."

Three points matter for online sellers:

• Your EAN-13 barcode remains valid. 2D codes are being added alongside it, not replacing it. GS1 itself says the GS1 QR code "needs to be used alongside an EAN or UPC barcode" for now (GS1 support), because most checkout scanners cannot read it yet. Industry groups expect the two to coexist until retailer readiness is close to universal.
• The GTIN stays the same. A GS1 Digital Link QR code is essentially a web address that contains the GTIN, optionally with batch number, serial number or expiry date. The number inside is the same EAN you already use.
• Digital Link is tied to GS1's system. A Digital Link normally points to a resolver set up by the brand owner within GS1's framework. Whether a number that is not licensed to you by GS1 can properly be used in a GS1 Digital Link QR code is doubtful, so if 2D codes with rich consumer information are part of your plans, this is another reason to consider GS1 membership.

For most small online sellers, nothing has to change today. Keep printing the EAN-13, and if you add a QR code for marketing (a link to instructions or a video), keep it visually separate from the barcode so neither interferes with scanning.

Checklist: getting EAN codes right as an online seller

Use this list before you buy codes, list products or print packaging.

1. Decide where you sell, now and in the next year or two. Branded products on Amazon or bol.com, Zalando, or supplying shops and chains point to GS1. Unbranded products, your own webshop, eBay, Etsy and "valid unique EAN" marketplaces can work with reseller codes. Some channels need no EAN at all.
2. Get your numbers from a source that issues each number once and keeps a record of who bought it. Never invent numbers or reuse codes from old products.
3. Count your codes per sellable variant: every size, colour, flavour, pack size and bundle. Add a buffer for new products.
4. Keep a simple code register: EAN, product name, variant, date assigned, and where it is listed. A spreadsheet with the EAN column formatted as text is enough.
5. Check each number before use: correct check digit, no restricted prefix, and a search on your marketplaces to confirm it is not attached to another product.
6. Know what GS1's registry will show. For GS1 codes, your company. For reseller codes, the original licence holder or nothing. Do not claim otherwise in listings or to customers.
7. Print the barcode properly: around 100% size, full height, clear quiet zones, dark bars on a light background, away from folds and seams. Test-scan before a full run.
8. Protect your listings with more than the EAN: a registered trademark visible on product and packaging, precise listing content, and dated evidence such as invoices, photos and your first listing date.
9. Give changed products a new code when the rules require it, such as new net content, a dimension change of 20% or more, a new brand or different bundle contents.
10. Re-check channel rules regularly. The situation described here is as of October 2026, and marketplace policies do change.

If reseller codes fit your channels, you can buy EAN codes that are issued once and registered to you in the GTINcodes register in our shops; see the prices there. If your plans include branded listings on Amazon or bol.com, Zalando or physical retail, start with your national GS1 organisation instead.