Free GS1 Digital Link generator.

Type

Web address syntax for GS1 identifiers

Standard

GS1 Digital Link Standard: URI Syntax 1.7.0 (2026); GS1 General Specifications 26.0

Carriers

QR Code (ISO/IEC 18004) or Data Matrix (ISO/IEC 16022), without the Function 1 character (FNC1)

Symbology identifiers

]Q1 for QR Code, ]d1 for Data Matrix

Identifiers

GTIN (01) and 15 others, e.g. 414 for locations, 8004 for assets

GTIN format

14 digits, padded with zeros in front

Module size

0.396–0.990 mm, target 0.495 mm (retail checkout only)

Quiet zone

4 modules (QR Code) or 1 module (Data Matrix), all sides

Print quality

1.5/12/660 or better (retail checkout)

GS1's own example shows the four parts:

GS1 equates this URI with the element strings (01)09520123456788(17)180426(10)ABC1(21)12345.

A slash, question mark or ampersand inside a value must be percent-encoded, such as %2F for a slash, because the URI uses them as separators. The generator does this for you, so type the plain value, but it leaves apostrophes, asterisks, parentheses and exclamation marks unencoded, against GS1's rule.

The GS1 identifiers, not the domain, identify the product: the domain only decides where a phone goes, and an app may replace it with its own.

• Your own domain: GS1 recommends it, ideally a subdomain such as id.example.com that keeps product identity and scan statistics apart from your website. Shoppers see your brand, and if the brand is sold, the domain goes with it: no reprint.
• id.gs1.org: GS1's global resolver, used in the canonical form of every Digital Link. Only the GTIN's licensee can set where it redirects, through a GS1 Member Organisation.

Either way, let the URI redirect instead of encoding a campaign page: the URI is the product's lasting identifier, while pages move. GS1 does not require a resolver but strongly recommends redirection.

At GS1's target of 0.495 mm per module, this generator's codes measure, quiet zone included:

• Module size: 0.396–0.990 mm for packs scanned only at retail checkouts, 0.743–0.990 mm if they also pass through general distribution. At 300 dpi, 6 whole dots give 0.508 mm.
• Placement: a code for the checkout should sit next to the EAN or UPC (in the tests GS1 cites, within 50 mm of its centre). A code only for consumers should sit apart.
• Length: keep the domain short. An upper-case scheme and domain encode more compactly, but after the domain case counts: ABC1 and abc1 are different batches.
• Link test: a verifier grades the print only, so scan the link with a phone too.

• A 13-digit GTIN after /01/. Since release 1.4.0 the GTIN has 14 digits, and new implementations need not read shorter forms. Add the zero yourself.
• Serial number before batch. /21/12345/10/ABC1 breaks GS1's order and is not a valid Digital Link. The generator keeps the order, but a data sheet does not check GS1's syntax.
• A logo in the middle or red modules. GS1 counts a logo as damage that uses up error correction, and the QR variant here has level L, which restores about 7%. Red modules can fail under scanners' red light.
• Printing the example. GS1 Prefix 952 is reserved for examples; id.gs1.org answered this page's sample with Not Found in October 2026. Use your own GTIN.