Barcode for online product listing: what to paste in the form

Paste the number printed under your barcode into the field marked Barcode, EAN, UPC or Product ID. Use one number for each size or colour, with no spaces, and keep the digit count the same as on the label.

The field you are looking for

When you list a product in an online store, the form asks for one number that names the item. It is the number printed under the bars on your label. Getting the barcode for online product listing right takes about five minutes per product, and most of that time goes on finding the right box.

The number is the same one that scans at a shop till. A scanner reads the bars and finds your product in the shop's system. The online form does the same job in text: it links your listing to that one item.

Most packs use a 13-digit number. Some forms also take a 12-digit version. You paste it once for each product, and once for each variant if you sell sizes or colours.

What the form calls it

Forms rarely say "barcode" in plain words. The label changes from store to store. Look for one of these:

• Barcode
• EAN or EAN-13
• UPC
• Product ID, with a drop-down beside it for the type
• Item code or product code

If the form has a drop-down, pick the type first and then paste. A 13-digit number goes with EAN. A 12-digit number goes with UPC. If the type and the count do not match, the box usually turns red and the form will not save.

Most forms also have a box called SKU. That one is different. The SKU is your own stock code, and you make it up yourself, like TEE-BLK-M for a black T-shirt in medium. Keep the SKU and the barcode number in their own boxes. Mixing them up is the most common reason a listing has to be fixed later.

Before you paste

Open the file with your numbers. If it is a spreadsheet, look at the column closely before you copy anything. Spreadsheets like to change long numbers. They may show a short form with a letter E in the middle. They may also drop a zero from the front of a number.

Fix this before you copy. Select the column, set its format to Text, and type or paste the numbers again. Then check three things on each row:

1. The count is 13 digits, or 12 if that is what you bought.
2. There are no spaces, dashes or dots.
3. The number matches the one printed on that product's label.

A quick way to count is to paste the number into a blank cell and use the length formula. It should return 13 or 12 and nothing else.

Pasting the number, one product at a time

For a single product, the steps are short.

1. Open the product page in the store's seller panel.
2. Find the field, using the names above.
3. If there is a type drop-down, choose EAN or UPC.
4. Paste the number. Click outside the box so the form reads it.
5. Save the listing as a draft.
6. Open the draft again and look at the field. The full number should still be there, with no digits missing.

Step six matters. Some forms trim a pasted value without telling you. A ten-second look after saving saves a week of a listing that will not show up in search.

Sizes and colours

Each variant needs its own number. A T-shirt in three sizes and two colours is six items, so it needs six numbers. A pack of 2 and a pack of 6 of the same soap are two items, so they need two numbers.

On the form, the variant rows sit under the main product. Paste each number on its own variant row, not on the parent row. The parent row often has no barcode field at all, and that is normal.

Print the label for each variant from the same list you used for the form. Then the shirt in the box carries the same number as the row on the screen.

Bulk upload sheets

If you list more than ten or so products, most stores let you upload a sheet instead. The column header will use one of the same names: Barcode, EAN, UPC or Product ID.

Set that column to Text before you paste. When you save the sheet as CSV, open the saved file in a plain text editor such as Notepad. Check that the numbers are still whole and still have their leading zeros. If they are not, the spreadsheet changed them during the save, and you need to fix the column and save again.

Upload a sheet of two or three rows first. Once those show up correctly, upload the rest.

Match the label to the listing

When the listing is saved, scan your printed label with a free scanner app on your phone. The app shows the number it reads. It should be the same number that sits in the form.

Keep a small log as you go. Four columns are enough: product name, variant, number, and the date you listed it. When you add a new colour next season, the log tells you which numbers are used and which are free.

When the form asks for something more

Some stores ask for more than the number. One may want a brand page set up first. Another may want a letter or a document before the field will save. Each store sets its own rules for this box, and the rules change.

Tell us where you sell. We will tell you what that store's form expects, so you can have it ready before you start the listing.

If you have no number yet

You need one number for each item you sell, and one for each size, colour or pack count. Count your variants first, then buy that many. If you plan to add a colour in a few months, add a few spare numbers now so the new labels match the old ones.

You can pick the count you need at PurchaseBarcode. The numbers come in a file you can paste straight into the form, along with the label art for printing.

Use code STARTUP10 for 10% off one order per account. It is valid until 31 December 2026 or for the first 100 uses on this site, whichever comes first.

Once the numbers arrive, open your first product, find the field, paste, save, and scan the label to match.