EAN-13 vs UPC-A: differences, conversion, and global use

EAN-13 has 13 digits, UPC-A has 12. They both encode the same kind of product identifier — manufacturer + product + check digit — but EAN-13 has an extra leading digit for the country/region. ## Quick conversion Any UPC-A can be expressed as EAN-13 by prefixing a leading 0: UPC-A: 012000161155 EAN-13: 0012000161155 (often dropped at scan time) Most US retail systems treat them interchangeably. ## When you'd use which - **UPC-A**: North American retail (US, Canada). 12 digits. - **EAN-13**: Global. 13 digits. The 13-digit format dominates outside North America. - **EAN-8**: Compact, for small packaging where EAN-13 won't fit. - **GTIN-14**: Used on cases and pallets — multi-pack outer cartons. All four are managed by GS1. The check-digit algorithm is the same. ## Why does it matter for lookup? If you scan a 13-digit code in our database, we'll find products registered under either format — we normalize internally so you don't have to convert. Try it: search [012000161155](/p/012000161155) (UPC-A) or any EAN-13 directly.