What is dual marking, and do I need it?
Dual marking means keeping the familiar UPC or EAN barcode on your packaging and adding a 2D code next to it, not swapping one for the other.
Last checked Aug 2026.
Why you'd print two barcodes
Not every checkout scanner can read a 2D barcode yet. GS1's Sunrise 2027 target is about getting most point-of-sale systems there by the end of 2027 (our Sunrise 2027 explainer covers what that target does and doesn't require). Until 2D reading is close to universal at checkout, a brand that wants the benefits of a 2D code (a page that opens on a phone, room for more information than a UPC can hold) still needs its existing 1D barcode to scan everywhere it already sells. Dual marking is printing both, together, during that transition.
What goes on the package
Your existing UPC or EAN barcode stays exactly as it is: same placement, same size, same printer settings you already use. The 2D code (QR or GS1 DataMatrix) is added as a second, separate symbol, encoding the same GTIN.
The one thing to get right: keep them apart
The main layout mistake is placing the two symbols close enough that a scanner's aiming beam or camera frame can catch both at once, or close enough that a cashier can't tell by eye which one they're aiming at. Give each barcode its own clear quiet zone (the blank margin GS1 specifies around a symbol so a scanner can tell where it starts and ends) and enough separation from the other symbol that there's no doubt which one is being scanned. As a rule of thumb, more separation than feels necessary is safer than less. The exact minimum gap depends on your symbol sizes, so check it on a printed proof rather than eyeballing the artwork on screen.
Sizing and contrast still matter, separately, for each symbol
Dual marking doesn't relax the normal rules for either barcode. Each symbol needs to be printed large enough to scan reliably at the distance and lighting of a real checkout, with its own full quiet zone, in dark ink on a light background. Never invert it (light code on a dark background), which is unreliable for most scanners. If you're unsure whether your planned print size is large enough, check it with a size calculator before sending artwork to print, not after.
When you can stop dual marking
There's no fixed calendar date for this. The honest answer: once checkout scanners at the retailers you sell through reliably read 2D codes, and you've confirmed that with them directly. Not before. GS1 describes the crossover as gradual, tied to scanner upgrades at retail, not a single cutover day. If one retailer tells you they no longer need your 1D barcode, that's their call, not a rule you can assume applies elsewhere.
How Codestamp handles this
Where Codestamp fits on your label
You already own a barcode number and a UPC that scans. Keep both. Codestamp gives that same number a QR code that can do more, and nothing you paid for has to change.
Your GTIN
Your product's barcode number, bought once from GS1 ($30 for one number) and yours for good. We never sell numbers: yours is all you need.
Your UPC
The stripes every checkout reads today. It stays on your label and keeps working in 2027 and after. No rush, and no wasted labels.
Add Codestamp
Your number in a GS1-standard QR code, free on our domain or yours from $9/mo. Checked and scan-tested, so it works the first time.
Every scan
A phone opens your product page, or one we host. Newer checkouts read your GTIN. Change where it points anytime. The label stays put.
You could do it yourself. Here is what you get with us.
GS1 runs a free shared link service, and any QR generator can hold a web address. Codestamp builds the address to the GS1 format and scan-tests the code, so it is right every time. You get one place to change where every code points after printing, a hosted product page if you have none, and your own name on the code from $9/mo. Your first 3 products are free on our shared domain.
Free for your first 3 products. No credit card, no time limit.