Barcode Standards for POS

Legacy KB ID: 4891

Question

Can POS read alpha-numeric barcodes?

Answer

It depends on the format used to print the barcode, which is partly dependent on the number of characters in the barcode. Code 39 format barcodes can include upper case letters and some other characters, and Extended Code 39 also includes lower case letters, while most other barcode formats only allow numbers.

There are 5 barcode formats that POS Administrator uses to print barcode labels, depending on the length and type of the barcode:

• For 13 digit barcodes (including a leading % character added for customer barcodes) POS uses EAN13
• For 12 digit barcodes (including a leading % character added for customer barcodes) POS uses UPCA
• For 8 digit barcodes (including a leading % character added for customer barcodes) POS uses EAN8
• For other lengths, POS uses Code 39.
• For Customer Loyalty barcodes, POS Administrator uses Extended Code 39.

Note that barcode scanners will read many formats but may need to be programmed to read others.

If you are still not able to scan your barcode labels successfully, try printing the barcodes larger on the labels and scan again.

Need more help?

Ask the Reckon Community at:https://community.reckon.com/reckon