What is a GTIN?
GTINs (Global Trade Item Number) are unique identifiers for products, often displayed as a barcode, that are important for product identification, catalog and order management, and data sharing. The most common GTIN types are GTIN-12 (12 digits) and GTIN-14 (14 digits).
Barcodes are "data carriers" that express GTINs, GTINs themselves are the data.
What is a GTIN-12 vs a UPC vs a GTIN-14?
GTIN-12 is for retail units, products that are able to be sold directly to consumers using a point-of-sale system. UPCs are the barcode expression of a GTIN-12, and are scannable by a POS terminal.
GTIN-14 is for cases, mastercases, or pallets of a product (shipping containers) and is typically used in logistics or for business-to-business transactions. GTIN-14s can be expressed as barcodes, but these barcodes are not UPCs as they cannot be scanned by a POS terminal, UPCs only express GTIN-12s.
Do my products need a GTIN-12 or a GTIN-14?
All retail units sold on Mable should have GTIN-12s, with scannable UPCs (GTIN-12 barcodes) on the product labeling.
While it is typical for cases to have GTIN-14s, cases on Mable can have GTIN-12s. A GTIN-12 can be expressed as a GTIN-14 by adding two zeroes to the beginning of the number, and it is recommended that a case with a GTIN-12 have the GTIN-14 version on a case barcode if needed. A GTIN-12 expressed as a GTIN-14 is still the same product identifier, so cannot be used on a different product.
Products must have unique GTINs for each level, unit, case, mastercase, etc., so a unit GTIN-12 expressed as a GTIN-14 (with two zeroes at the beginning) cannot be used for the case level of that product, the case must have its own unique GTIN-12 or GTIN-14.
What do the numbers in a GTIN mean?
In a GTIN-14 (or a GTIN-12 expressed as a GTIN-14), each digit has a distinct purpose and meaning.
The first digit gives information about the packaging of that product. If the first digit in a GTIN-14 is a 0 that indicates the product is likely a retail unit, and if the first digit is 1 through 8 that indicates that the product is a shipping container- case, mastercase, etc. and cannot be sold via POS.
The second through thirteenth digits in a GTIN-14 give information about the GS1 company that issued the GTIN, and list the item reference number for the product that the GTIN belongs to. Both the GS1 company prefix and the item reference number can vary in length, a longer GS1 company prefix will mean a shorter item reference number, and vice versa. A retail unit GTIN and case GTIN for the same product will likely share an item reference number, but do not have to.
The final digit in a GTIN-14 (or GTIN-12) is called the check digit. This digit is calculated using a specific formula and all of the prior digits in the GTIN. The check digit ensures that a GTIN is correct and accurate and helps to prevent typos or invalid GTINs.
GTIN Resources
The GS1 is the organization that issues and oversees GTINs. Their website has a lot of information and resources on GTINs and how to acquire them. You can also lookup your GTINs in their database to check and verify your product data. The GS1 also has a check digit calculator where you can lookup your GTINs to make sure the check digit is correct.
- https://www.gs1.org/
- https://www.gs1.org/services/verified-by-gs1/results?gtin=9506000140445
- https://www.gs1.org/services/check-digit-calculator
For more information on GTINs, to obtain new GTINs, or for GTIN management you can also visit https://gtin.cloud/