Free ISBN barcode generator

An ISBN barcode at a glance

The International ISBN Agency’s ISBN Users’ Manual says that since 1 January 2007 agencies issue only 13-digit ISBNs, that the ISBN is machine-readable as an EAN-13 barcode, and that it must be printed in human-readable form above the barcode, preceded by “ISBN”. In the United States, ISBNs come from R.R. Bowker, the U.S. ISBN Agency. The generator does not add that “ISBN …” line; set it above the barcode in your cover file.

The 5-digit price add-on

The manual says the five-digit add-on is used in the United States and Canada to show the price, and points to the Book Industry Study Group, whose barcoding guidelines define the values:

BISG asks publishers who leave the price out to check with their trading partners first, since some retailers require it. The generator reads the add-on back to you in the status line, for example “Add-on 51995: U.S. price $19.95”.

A printed example

What each setting does for an ISBN

• Data. Hyphens are ignored. An ISBN-10 is checked with its own modulo 11 rule and converted by putting 978 in front of its first nine digits and working out a new check digit. An ISBN-13 must start 978 or 979; a 979-0 number is an ISMN for printed music, and the status line says so. Type the add-on after one space.
• Add-on placement. The generator leaves a 9-module gap between the EAN-13 and the add-on (GS1 allows 7 to 12) and 7 modules of quiet zone after it (GS1’s minimum is 5). It prints the add-on’s digits above its bars, at least 0.5X clear of them, and lines the bars up with the bottom of the main symbol’s guard bars, as GS1 specifies.
• Size and downloads. As for EAN-13: start at 0.330 mm and 22.85 mm, SVG at the printed size, PNG in whole printer dots.

Common mistakes

• Leaving out the “ISBN 978-…” line above the barcode. The manual requires it.
• Reusing an ISBN for a new edition or format. Each format of each edition needs its own ISBN; ISBN barcodes for books covers when.
• Encoding a price that does not match the cover. The add-on and the printed price should agree. To leave the price out, use 90000, BISG’s value for no price encoded, after checking with your retailers.
• Shrinking the barcode to fit the design. The add-on and its gap add width: at 100% the whole thing is 169 modules, 55.8 mm, wide. Plan the space before the artwork is final.

Worked example

1. Type 978-92-95055-12-4 51995. The check digit is right: 2×3 + 1 + 5×3 + 5 + 0×3 + 5 + 9×3 + 2 + 9×3 + 8 + 7×3 + 9 = 126, so 4. The status line adds “Add-on 51995: U.S. price $19.95.”
2. Keep 0.330 mm. The readout shows the width of the whole symbol, add-on included: 55.8 mm, which you can check against the space on the cover.
3. Download the SVG, place it at 100% in the lower right of the back cover, and add “ISBN 978-92-95055-12-4” above it.

Sources

1. International ISBN Agency: ISBN Users' Manual (seventh edition) (accessed October 27, 2026)
2. International ISBN Agency: View Agency: United States (R.R. Bowker, LLC - US ISBN Agency) (accessed October 27, 2026)
3. Book Industry Study Group: Barcoding Guidelines for the US Book Industry (accessed October 27, 2026)
4. GS1: GS1 Company Prefix (list of GS1 Prefixes) (accessed October 27, 2026)
5. GS1: GS1 General Specifications Standard (Release 26.0) (accessed October 27, 2026)