ISBN Barcode Generator

How ISBN barcodes work

ISBNs are issued by national ISBN agencies, not by GS1, but books are sold through retail checkouts, so the ISBN is placed into the GS1 system under the 978 and 979 prefixes, nicknamed Bookland. The resulting symbol is a normal EAN-13. Get your ISBN from the agency in your country; the app validates it but does not issue numbers.

Older ISBN-10 numbers are converted by adding 978 in front, dropping the old check character (which could be X) and calculating a new mod-10 check digit. The 979 prefix is only used for ISBN-13 and has no ISBN-10 equivalent.

The EAN-5 price add-on

• A separate 5-digit supplement printed to the right of the main symbol, used mainly in the US and some other markets.
• The first digit indicates currency, for example 5 for US dollars; the remaining four give the price, so 52495 means USD 24.95.
• 90000 means no suggested retail price. Some publishers use 5-digit add-ons for internal codes instead.
• Periodicals use the ISSN with prefix 977 and often a 2-digit add-on for the issue number.

Placement and print size

Place the barcode on the back cover, usually lower right, with the human-readable ISBN printed above it. Keep the EAN-13 at 80% to 100% magnification or larger and respect the 11X and 7X quiet zones; the add-on needs its own small gap after the main symbol. Print in solid black or another dark color on a light panel, not on a busy photo or a red background. Export as vector PDF or SVG so the bars stay crisp in your layout software.

How to make it

1. Choose ISBN in the barcode generator.
2. Enter your ISBN-10 or ISBN-13; hyphens are ignored and the check digit is recalculated.
3. Optionally add the 5-digit price add-on, or 90000 for no price.
4. Export as PDF or SVG and place it on the back cover.
5. Scan a proof copy to confirm the ISBN reads correctly.

Frequently asked questions