Free GS1 Digital Link QR Code Generator

GS1 Digital Link QR codes are the next generation of retail barcodes. They replace traditional 1D barcodes (like EAN-13 and UPC-A) with a 2D QR code that carries the same GTIN data — so it works at checkout — plus additional attributes like batch/lot number, serial number, and expiry date, plus a URL linking to rich product information online.

The GS1 Sunrise 2027 initiative requires major retailers worldwide to accept 2D barcodes at point of sale. If you sell products in retail, switching to GS1 Digital Link now prepares you for that deadline while also enabling digital product experiences — provenance data, recall notices, nutritional info, and more — all accessible from the same code on the packaging.

This generator creates QR codes using the GS1 Digital Link URI syntax, compatible with retail POS scanners that support the standard. All codes are generated in your browser — your product data is never stored on any server.

It helps to be precise about what a Digital Link QR code is: a picture of a URL that carries your GTIN and optional attributes in its path. For that URL to do anything useful when scanned, something has to answer it — a resolver. The resolver parses the GTIN out of the path, looks up the destinations registered for it, and redirects: a shopper's plain scan goes to your default destination, while a request naming a specific link type (product information, allergen data, a recall notice) goes to that destination instead. Same printed code, different answers.

reRoute operates a conformant GS1 resolver, available on a paid plan: you claim a company prefix, register GTINs under it, and attach destinations keyed by GS1 link types. The resolver answers plain scans, link-type requests, and linkset requests — returning every registered destination as RFC 9264 JSON when a retailer or marketplace system asks — and publishes a resolver description for GS1 tooling to discover. That linkset behaviour is the practical test separating a real resolver from a tool that merely generates GS1-shaped URLs.

One honest caveat: your GS1 company prefix itself is licensed from your local GS1 member organisation — nobody else can issue one, including us. Prefix claims inside reRoute are self-asserted; we keep each prefix unique within our system so no one else can register GTINs under it after you claim it, but we do not verify ownership against GS1's registry. Bring the prefix GS1 issued you.

Timing-wise, keep the linear barcode on pack alongside the QR code through the transition — Sunrise 2027 is an industry initiative rather than a law, and checkout hardware upgrades unevenly. The brands moving now are the ones whose artwork cycles are long: getting the 2D code onto packaging this cycle means the printed base is ready as retailer scanners catch up.

If you are earlier in the process, start with the guides: our explainer on what GS1 Digital Link actually is at /resources/what-is-gs1-digital-link, and the packaging-readiness walkthrough for Sunrise 2027 at /resources/gs1-digital-link-packaging-2027.

Food and beverage brands encode expiry dates and batch numbers so the same code serves checkout, date-checking, and stock rotation — and links shoppers to ingredients, allergen, and nutrition data that never fits on the label.

Recall readiness is one of the strongest cases: because the code resolves through a resolver rather than pointing at a fixed page, a recall notice can be attached to the affected GTIN — or batch — after the product has shipped, and every code already in the field starts surfacing it.

Regulated categories — cosmetics, chemicals, supplements — use link types to route compliance documents, safety data sheets, and certifications from the same code that handles the consumer scan.

Marketing teams get an on-pack channel that does not require new artwork per campaign: the default destination behind the code can move from product page to promotion to sustainability story while the printed pack stays unchanged.

Exporters and marketplace sellers benefit from the linkset side: retailer and marketplace systems that consume Digital Links in bulk can query every registered destination for your GTINs as structured JSON, straight from your resolver.