QR code or GS1 DataMatrix: which 2D barcode for retail?

For retail checkout, use a QR code of a GS1 Digital Link. GS1 DataMatrix is the other GS1 2D symbol: it holds an element string, not a web address, and it is used mostly in healthcare and some fresh food. Beepable draws both. A plain Data Matrix of a web address is a third thing, and it is neither of them.

How do the two symbols compare?

If the brief says shoppers should scan the pack, use the QR code. If a hospital or fresh-food partner asks for an element string, use GS1 DataMatrix. If the brief only says "add a 2D code", ask which one: an address and an element string are not interchangeable.

How do I make each one?

1. Build the Digital Link for your GTIN on the Digital Link page. It shows the link and the matching element string.
2. For the QR code, download it there, or put the link in a sheet with auto.
3. For a GS1 DataMatrix, use the element string with gs1datamatrix, for example in a picture address:

   https://beepable.app/b/gs1datamatrix.png?v=(01)09506000134352(17)271231&k=YOUR_PICTURE_KEY

4. Scan the result with the kind of reader your partner uses, not only with a phone.

The element string must start with (01) and a 14-digit GTIN. Dates are (15) and (17) as YYMMDD, and lot, serial, and variant are (10), (21), and (22). Other application identifiers are refused. Do not typeset the brackets as text and call it a barcode: the symbol needs the FNC1 encoding, which Beepable adds.

Why is a plain Data Matrix of a URL neither?

Writing datamatrix draws a plain Data Matrix of exactly the text you give. If that text is a Digital Link, the symbol holds the address, but it is not the retail QR code and it is not the GS1 DataMatrix syntax. auto never chooses it. Use it only when a packing line or a camera specification asks for a plain Data Matrix, as the Data Matrix guide explains.

A phone may still read a plain Data Matrix and offer to open the address. That does not make it a checkout code: a till that expects a GS1 symbol can ignore it. Test with a phone and a till before a print run.

What should the artwork brief say?

• The symbol: QR code with a GS1 Digital Link, or GS1 DataMatrix with an element string.
• The GTIN, and for a QR code the domain, such as https://id.gs1.org.
• Keep the linear barcode. Sunrise 2027 does not switch it off.
• Place the QR code within 50 mm of the linear barcode and print the GTIN once.
• If a partner asked for GS1 DataMatrix, do not swap in a QR code or a plain Data Matrix without their written agreement.

What should I avoid promising a retailer?

Do not promise that every till will read a 2D code in 2027, or that dropping the EAN-13 is safe; the target is voluntary and chains move at their own pace. A QR code of your homepage is not a Digital Link, because it has no /01/ and GTIN. And a GS1 DataMatrix does not replace the linear barcode on a retail pack.

Frequently asked questions