GS1 DataBar (produce sticker barcode)
GS1 DataBar is a family of narrow barcodes for items too small for a UPC or EAN. On a produce sticker it is the small stacked barcode beside the PLU number, carrying a 14-digit product number.
How to read it
GS1 DataBar Stacked splits the barcode into two rows, one above the other, for places where the normal symbol would be too wide; its taller variation, Stacked Omnidirectional, is designed to be read by omnidirectional scanners. On loose fruit and vegetables, IFPS describes it as designed to fit on PLU stickers, carrying a 14-digit GTIN, and asks retailers to check their tills can scan it and map it to the PLU code for pricing. The 4- or 5-digit PLU printed beside it is a separate number from IFPS. GS1’s DataBar Expanded version can also hold extra data such as a weight or a best-before date.
Also searched as: barcode on fruit sticker, coupon barcode, databar, gs1 databar, reduced space symbology, rss-14, stacked barcode.
These pages say what each code and its parts mean under the standard that defines it. A barcode identifies an item; it doesn’t say where the item was made or whether it is genuine, and the label and the maker are the place to look for that.
Look-alikes
A UPC-A or EAN-13 is one row of bars with guard bars at the ends and in the middle. A PDF417 also has stacked rows, but many more of them.
Read next
- Next in Barcodes and QR codesPLU code (produce sticker number)A PLU code is the 4- or 5-digit number on a sticker on loose fruit and vegetables. It tells the cashier what the item is, so it is charged the right price. Four digits is conventionally grown; a 9 in front of those four digits is organic.
- The same shape in Blueprint symbolsGFCI receptacleAn outlet with built-in protection against electric shock. It is the outlet symbol with the letters GFCI beside it.
More barcodes and QR codes
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with circles, letters and numbers or lines.
Sources
- GS1 General Specifications Standard, Release 26.0, ratified January 2026, GS1 AISBL, §2.1.3.6 (loose produce); §5.1.1; §5.5.1
- Best Practices for Implementing PLU Codes in Produce for Retailers, PLU Codes in Mexico, revision 1.0, March 2014, International Federation for Produce Standards (IFPS), Table 1; best practices 2 and 3
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 9, 2026. How we research
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