Barcodes & QR Codes

Pubblish generates print-ready ISBN barcodes for your book covers, including the optional price extension used by retailers. You can download barcodes as SVG (vector, for print) or PNG (raster).

The ISBN Barcode

The barcode on the back of a book is an EAN-13 barcode. It encodes the book’s 13-digit ISBN so retailers and distributors can scan and identify your book. Every edition with a different ISBN needs its own barcode.

The Price Extension

Most book barcodes include a smaller 5-digit price extension to the right of the main barcode. This encodes the suggested retail price.

The price extension is advisory — it tells the retailer what the publisher suggests, but point-of-sale systems use their own price database. It’s not required, but physical retailers expect it.

How the Price Extension Works

The 5-digit code is formatted as [Currency digit][Price in cents, 4 digits]:

Supported Currencies

The price extension system was designed for the English-language book trade in the early 1990s and has never been updated. Only five currencies have defined prefix digits:

Digits 2, 7, and 8 are undefined. There is no prefix for the Euro, Yen, or any other currency. If your currency is not listed above, use 90000 (no price).

Price Limits

The standard format supports prices up to $99.99 (or the equivalent in other currencies). The first digit is the currency prefix, leaving four digits for the price in cents.

US Dollar exception: The BISG (Book Industry Study Group) extended the range for USD only. Prices from $100.00 to $499.99 are encoded by dropping the currency prefix and using all five digits as the price in cents. For example, 14999 = US $149.99.

This BISG extension is US-only and can create ambiguity — for example, 14999 could mean US $149.99 (BISG) or GBP £49.99 (standard prefix 1). In practice this is rarely a problem because publishers know which market their barcode targets. Pubblish supports the BISG range for USD automatically when you enter a price over $99.99.

For other currencies, prices above $99.99 cannot be encoded. Use 90000 (no price) or the special value x9999 (where x is the currency prefix), which means “price is $99.99 or higher, consult publisher.”

Special Values

Do You Need a Price Extension?

A bare EAN-13 barcode (without the price extension) is a valid, scannable barcode. Many books are sold with just the ISBN barcode and no price supplement. However:

• Physical retail bookshops in the US and UK typically expect the price extension. Some distributors and wholesalers require it before they will stock a book.
• Online retailers (Amazon, etc.) do not use the price extension — they set their own prices.
• Print-on-demand services like IngramSpark and KDP generally do not require the supplement, though IngramSpark recommends it for books intended for brick-and-mortar distribution.

If your book will be sold in physical shops, add the price extension with your retail price. If you’re unsure, use 90000 (no price) — this tells retailers that no suggested price is encoded, and they should refer to their own catalogue. Using 90000 is always safe and is the most common choice worldwide.

A barcode without any supplement is fine for ebooks, direct sales, and online-only distribution.

Generating a Barcode

There are two ways to generate barcodes in Pubblish.

From the Barcode Generator Tool

The dedicated tool page at Tools > Barcode Generator offers the most flexibility:

1. Pick an edition — select a title from your catalogue, then choose an edition. The ISBN, currency, and price are pre-filled automatically.
2. Any ISBN — switch to this tab to enter any ISBN-13 manually. Useful for ISBNs not yet in your catalogue, or for generating barcodes for other publishers.
3. Choose your options:
4. Price extension: None (bare barcode), Price (enter currency and amount), or No price (90000)
5. ISBN header: Toggle to show the ISBN above the barcode, correctly hyphenated (e.g. “ISBN 978-0-14-143956-3”)
6. Click SVG for a vector file (best for print) or PNG for a raster image

Your options are preserved when switching between tabs or editions.

From the Edition Detail

For quick access while editing:

1. Open the title and go to the Editions tab
2. Click the barcode icon in the Actions column (only appears for editions with an ISBN)
3. A dialog opens with the same options — price extension, ISBN header, and SVG/PNG download

Tips

• Barcodes are generated on the fly — nothing is stored. Generate as many variants as you need.
• ISBNs are automatically cleaned — you can paste an ISBN with hyphens, spaces, or other separators and Pubblish will extract the digits. Both ISBN-13 and ISBN-10 are accepted — ISBN-10 is automatically converted to ISBN-13.
• The ISBN header text above the barcode is correctly hyphenated using the official ISBN range tables from the International ISBN Agency, updated monthly.

Output Formats

SVG (Recommended for Print)

• Vector format — scales to any size without quality loss
• Transparent background — places cleanly on any cover colour
• Precise physical dimensions in millimetres embedded in the file
• Compatible with InDesign, Affinity Publisher, Canva, and all professional layout tools

PNG

• Raster format at 4x resolution — suitable for screen use and basic print
• White background — ready to use without further editing
• Trimmed to the barcode content with minimal padding

Placement on Your Cover

• Standard position: lower-right area of the back cover
• Ensure contrast: black bars on a white or very light background. If your cover is dark, place the barcode inside a white rectangle with at least 3mm margin on all sides.
• Don’t resize below the minimum: the barcode should be at least 25mm wide for the EAN-13 portion. Smaller barcodes may not scan reliably.
• Check with your printer/distributor — some have specific requirements for barcode size, placement, or quiet zones (the blank space around the barcode).