PrestaShop and barcodes

Native barcodes in PrestaShop

Without using Merlin Backoffice ® Flex or other PrestaShop enrichment modules, the possibilities are very limited. You can only associate EAN13 or UPC barcode values (and ISBN values, which are another form of EAN13 barcode) with products and variations.

But you won't be able to do much with them, as you don't have an inventory tool or label printing capabilities...

Other barcode formats

There are many different types of barcode, just to name a few...

EAN13, EAN128, UPC, CODE39, CODE93, CODE128, QR CODE, AZTEC, PDF 417, GS1 128, Interleaved etc...

Two of these are particularly interesting to know:

QR Code

Now popular, this code can be scanned with a camera to open a web page whose address is given by the code. 

What's in it for you? By placing a QR Code on your price labels or your paper or PDF catalogs, you enable your customers to open the purchase page for each item, with a single click. 

Code 128

This is an all-purpose barcode of variable size, which can contain any text (but limit its length to around 30 letters or 60 digits). When scanned, it returns the text in question.

You can use it to create barcodes containing the references (or supplier references) of your items, both for your labels and for inventory-taking and searching with a tablet. So there's no need to buy EAN13s, or use those of your suppliers (who sometimes don't have them).

How to acquire series of barcode values

For GSIN, EAN and UPC barcodes, it is forbidden to use random values, except for internal use. For any public use (website, marketplace, customer communication, etc.), you must only use barcodes supplied by GS1 (www.gs1.fr).

GS1 is the only organization worldwide accredited to produce and market barcode values of this type.

So either you need barcodes for your own products, and you'll need to buy them (around €100/year for 50,000 values), or if you want to market other brands' products, on a marketplace for example, you'll need to use the barcodes already purchased by the brand and associated with each of their products.

This allows you to identify the same product sold by several retailers. And uniquely identify your own.

When you buy a series of barcodes from GS1, they will all start with a common series of digits (usually 5), the prefix, which formally identifies you in your field of activity and region.

Generate barcode series for internal use

Yes, Merlin Backoffice ® Flex can do this too, for both UPC and EAN13, and store them directly in PS. And it does it intelligently, with auto-increment and automatic addition of the checksum bit.

The benefit for you: one-click association of unique, compliant barcodes with your entire catalog.

We refer you to the MagiEdit video tutorial to see or review this tool.

How to integrate a series of barcodes purchased from GS1 into PrestaShop

Merlin offers two methods. The choice is yours.

Thanks to the barcode generator included in MagicEdit

It lets you enter your GS1 prefix, the first value of the purchased series and the increment between each value.

With one click, you can then ask it to assign a code to each item (product / and or declination).

By importing a list

Nothing could be easier with Merlin Backoffice ® Flex's import tool, without doubt the most powerful, fast and customizable CSV and Excel (xlsx and xls) import module available. 

Print or generate PDF catalogs with barcodes

Did you doubt it? Our module, in its basic version (ESSENTIAL package), enables you to produce PDF or paper catalogs, listing products and/or variations, grouping items by category and containing the information columns of your choice.

When you include EAN13 and/or UPC columns, the values of these headings will be displayed as real barcodes.

Useful for you or your sales staff: inventory or search for items quickly with a handheld scanner. 

Generate price labels with barcodes

Merlin Backoffice ® Flex offers an easy-to-use label generator with a predefined format, sufficient in most cases to include either EAN13 or UPC.

In response to demand for greater customization, we also offer an optional PRO label generator, enabling you to create labels of any shape and size, with fully customizable content (choice of information, headings, positioning, zone sizes, text and background colors, borders, background images, etc.).

Starting with version 2.2.2 of Merlin Backoffice ® Flex, this pro generator allows you to include up to 3 barcodes per label:

• 1 zone with the QR Code pointing to the product page on the site.
• 1 zone with a choice of EAN13 / UPC / ISBN barcode (for booksellers) or a code 128 linked to the heading of your choice (Id, reference, MPN etc...).
• 1 completely free zone with a barcode in the format of your choice (15 formats supported), linked to the heading of your choice. This could be, for example, another code 128 giving the info of your choice, a QR code allowing you to retrieve the product photo, an AZTEC 2D code etc...

Benefit to you: create your own branded price and stock labels in record time, with the information you want. During sales periods, highlight your discounts by playing with the sizes and colors of your labels.

Note: this advanced generator can also be used to produce highly personalized paper or PDF catalogs. 

Inventory with handheld scanner

Depending on your company status, you are legally obliged to carry out a complete inventory (or count) of your physical stock. In particular, this enables you to calculate the exact value of your stock, your losses, finalize your balance sheet and, incidentally, update the stock in your PrestaShop database.

Starting with the PREMIUM package, Merlin Backoffice ® Flex also includes an inventory tool to make all this easy. And of course, it can be controlled by a barcode scanner to flash barcode labels and count stock items.

Benefit to you: quick and easy, with our solution you can print out your stock and price labels, and then use them to carry out inventories quickly and efficiently. 

If you follow our advice to use the CODE 128 format in your labels, created from supplier part numbers (themselves imported from a supplier file, also with Merlin), then you have an all-in-one tool for efficiently managing your stock from one end of the chain to the other.