Barcode Scanner Online
Scan a barcode or QR code with your phone or webcam camera, or from a photo, and read the number or text it holds. For retail barcodes it checks the check digit and names the GS1 office that issued the number. It cannot look up a product's name or price: a barcode does not contain them.
Ready to scan
Press Start scanning and allow the camera, then hold the barcode inside the frame. No camera? Use Scan a photo.
This session
The list lives only in this tab. It is gone when you close the page.
What This Barcode Scanner Does
This barcode scanner online reads the barcode or QR code in front of your camera, or in a photo you choose, and shows the number or text it carries. It works in the browser on phones, tablets and computers with no app and no sign-up. Decoding happens on your device: the page uses the browser's built-in BarcodeDetector (from the W3C Shape Detection API draft) where one exists, and otherwise loads the open-source ZXing-C++ reader compiled to WebAssembly.
A barcode is only a key. A supermarket barcode holds a 13-digit number, not a product name or a price; those sit in the shop's own database. So the scanner tells you what the code says, checks it, and gives you a web search for the number. It does not invent a product name.
How to Scan a Barcode With Your Camera
- Press Start scanning and allow camera access when the browser asks. On a phone the back camera is chosen first.
- Hold the code inside the frame, flat and still, with the bars running across the long side of the frame.
- Wait for the frame to pulse. The result appears above the picture and under Last scan, and the scanner keeps going so you can scan the next item.
- Use Download CSV to keep a list of everything you scanned in this session.
Line barcodes (EAN, UPC, Code 128) are accepted only after two camera frames agree on the same value, which filters out most one-frame misreads. QR codes are accepted on the first read because they carry their own error correction, defined in the QR standard ISO/IEC 18004.
Glare is the most common reason a code will not read. Tilt the item slightly, move away from a ceiling light, or turn on Torch if your phone offers it. Laptop webcams often have fixed focus, so move a small barcode further away rather than closer, or take a sharp photo and use Scan a photo.
What the Numbers in a Retail Barcode Mean
EAN-13, UPC-A, EAN-8 and ITF-14 carry a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN). The GS1 General Specifications define its last digit as a check digit computed from the others, so the scanner recomputes it and tells you if the read is inconsistent. UPC-E short codes are expanded to the full 12-digit UPC-A by the same specification's zero-suppression rules.
| Starts with | Meaning (GS1 prefix list) |
|---|---|
| 000–139 | Number issued by GS1 US (020–029 and 040–049 are shop-internal) |
| 200–299 | Shop-internal number, such as weighed fresh food |
| 400–440 | Number issued by GS1 Germany |
| 500–509 | Number issued by GS1 UK |
| 690–699 | Number issued by GS1 China |
| 977 | Magazine or journal (ISSN) |
| 978–979 | Book (ISBN), as set by the International ISBN Agency |
The prefix shows which national GS1 office gave the number to the brand owner. GS1 states on its company prefix page that it does not show where the product was made. For books starting 978, the scanner also gives the older 10-digit ISBN; books starting 979 have none.
Barcode Types It Reads
Line codes: EAN-13, EAN-8, UPC-A, UPC-E, Code 128, Code 39, Code 93, Codabar and ITF. Two-dimensional codes: QR Code, Data Matrix, Aztec and PDF417. For a QR code that holds a web address, the scanner shows an Open link button only for http and https links, so a code cannot run script on the page. For a Wi-Fi QR code it names the network and its security type. If you only need QR codes, the QR code scanner is a lighter page, and the food barcode scanner looks up ingredients for groceries.
Sources and Related Pages
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the camera picture or the photo uploaded?
No. Decoding runs in your browser. The camera picture and any photo you pick stay on your device. The only download is the barcode reader itself, from a public code library, when your browser has no built-in reader.
Can it tell me the product name or price?
No. A retail barcode holds only a number. The name and price live in the shop's own system. This page shows the number, checks it, and gives you a web search for it.
Why will my laptop webcam not read a small barcode?
Many laptop webcams have fixed focus, so a barcode close enough to fill the frame is blurred. Hold it a little further away in good light, take a sharp photo with a phone and use Scan a photo, or open this page on your phone.
Does the country in the result mean where the product was made?
No. The first digits show which national GS1 office issued the number to the brand owner. A company registered in one country can make its goods anywhere.
Why does it say the check digit failed?
The last digit of a retail barcode is calculated from the others. If it does not match, a digit was misread or the code was printed wrong. Scan again with less glare and the code flat.
Which barcode types can it read?
EAN-13, EAN-8, UPC-A, UPC-E, Code 128, Code 39, Code 93, Codabar, ITF, QR Code, Data Matrix, Aztec and PDF417. Browsers with a built-in reader may list a few more or fewer formats.