8 Third-party UPC Barcode Vendors
Third-party UPC vendors can be an alternative to GS1 for some sellers on Amazon and eBay. Before you purchase UPCs from any one of these third-party UPC vendors, you may want to read our article on using UPCs on Amazon.
If people search through the GS1 database with your UPC, then they’ll find it attached to a defunct company. That’s because the UPC prefix you purchased was assigned to some other entity in the past. This may not matter for some sellers, but others who want to establish a long-term legitimate brand may want to consider official barcodes. For instance, if you want your product on shelves at a major retailer like Target, you may need official GTIN codes. You may also need GS1 codes for retailers that participate in Electronic Data Interchange (EDI).
If you’re ready to proceed, then take a look at the third-party UPC vendors below. They’ll sell you blocks of UPCs ranging from 1 to 10,000 for far less than what they’d cost through GS1. Visit the US GS1 website to learn more information about pricing, prefixes, and more!
These websites may be a better option than eBay since you’ll be able to access your account and see your purchase history. They’ll also provide some certificate of authenticity. But those certificates won’t mean much to anyone outside of the vendor.
Prices reflected in the screenshot are from the date of the article and may be different when you visit the site. We’ll list the price for 1,000 UPC barcodes as a frame of reference.
SellerZen is not affiliated with any of these services, nor does SellerZen endorse any of these services. We’ve created this list only for informational purposes, so do your own due diligence before you sign up with any services listed in this article.
Barcodes Mania
With the purchase of barcodes, buyers will get the following:
- EAN and UPC numbers
- Excel spreadsheet and PDF
- Barcode artwork in EPS and JPG formats
- Certificate of Authenticity
- Free label template
1,000 barcodes sell for $180. If you only want the numbers, the codes are slightly cheaper. For just the numbers, 1,000 barcodes will cost you $159.99.
Bar Codes Talk
BarCodesTalk has several useful links on its website, including a label designer that many sellers may find useful. There are also some useful links for new sellers, including how to list on Amazon and a link to search the GEPIR database of GTINs.
This third-party UPC vendor offers these features with purchase of barcodes:
- EAN and UPC numbers with purchase
- Certificate of GTIN Assignment
- EPS and JPG images
- Excel and PDF spreadsheet of numbers
1,000 barcodes go for $220.
Instant UPC Codes
This vendor has a 110% Price Match Guarantee, which would make your barcodes cheaper thanks to a quick overview of this article. At standard rates, prices are slightly higher than other third-party UPC vendors on this list. With a purchase of the barcodes, you’ll get the following:
- Free barcode image tools with EPS, JPG, GIF, and PNG formats
- UPC and EAN numbers
1,000 UPCs cost $220.
Just UPC
Just UPC advertises that its UPCs are 100% compatible with Amazon eBay, Shopify, and Magento. With your purchase, you’ll get the following:
- UPC and EAN barcodes in TXT, CSV, XLS (Excel) formats
- Certificate of Issuance that certifies your number assignments
- Printable labels in PNG and EPS formats
1,000 UPCs go for $175. With the current 20% off promotion, you can get 1,000 UPC barcodes for $140.
Nationwide Barcode
The offering here is fairly standard. You’ll find some useful articles on this website as well as a free e-book if you’re interested in learning more about barcodes.
With your purchase of barcodes, you’ll get the following:
- Certificate of Authenticity
- UPC and EAN numbers
- Ownership documents
- Barcode graphics
- Excel spreadsheet of numbers
1,000 barcodes sell for $280.
Product Barcodes
Product Barcodes states that its UPCs work with Amazon, eBay, and Walmart Online. When you purchase their package, you get UPC and EAN codes, barcode images, and lifetime technical support. What that technical support entails is a bit unclear.
1,000 UPCs sell for $99.99.
Speedy Barcodes
Speedy Barcodes sells UPCs by bundles, so you won’t be able to get a specific number like 103 barcodes. The website lists that its barcodes will work with websites that don’t require a GS1 certificate. Interestingly, Speedy Barcodes lists Amazon as verifying barcodes through GS1’s GEPIR database. If this is true, then some barcodes may not work. Link to their questions and answers here.
With the purchase of barcodes, you’ll get:
- Certificate of Authenticity that proves the transfer of ownership to you
- UPC and EAN numbers
- Excel and PDF spreadsheet of your barcodes
- Digital barcode artwork for your barcodes in EPS, JPG, and PDF formats
The price for 1,000 UPCs is normally $230, but with the promotion, it’s $180.
SnapUPC
Barcodes purchased from SnapUPC come in a CSV file. There are no additional features advertised through this site, so if you’re looking for artwork for your UPCs, you’ll have to come up with your own or look elsewhere.
1,000 UPCs sell for $175.
Third-party UPCs can be a cheap alternative for Private Label sellers who sell solely online. If you only need the barcodes to be able to create new listings, then these vendors may be a better option than having to go through GS1.
Most, if not all of the third-party UPC vendors listed above offer the same guarantee: you’ll get a block of UPCs assigned to you from their database.
One thing to consider: if you’re purchasing small blocks of codes from different retailers, a search on the GS1 database will reveal many different businesses. If you want to keep your UPCs consistent, you should consider purchasing a larger block of codes.
But purchasing smaller blocks of UPCs can give you different blocks of sequential UPCs. You can use these blocks for different product categories for your own recordkeeping.
However, if you’ve gone through the trouble trademarking and brand registering your business, then you’ll likely want to purchase official GS1 codes as well. By purchasing official codes, you’ll have less trouble later if you expand to major brick and mortar retailers like Walmart, Target, or Costco. You’ll also get your own company prefix.
Amazon’s recommendation is that you use GS1 codes. Should they ever enforce verification, then third-party UPCs will no longer be viable. Other marketplaces like eBay and Etsy are sure to follow.
So when considering third-party UPCs, think about the long-term goals for your business. Reassigning UPCs for all of your products later can be a nightmare. For some marketplaces like Amazon, you’ll have to create new listings for new UPCs, and you’ll lose all of your sales histories, reviews, and rankings.
Check out these other useful articles for your Amazon or eBay business:
