What is a SKU and how is it different from a barcode?

A SKU (stock keeping unit) is your own internal product code — you invent it and it only has to be unique inside your business. A retail barcode number such as a UPC or EAN is licensed from GS1 and has to be unique worldwide. Most businesses print their SKU as a Code 128 barcode for internal scanning and use a GS1 number only if products are sold through other retailers.

What makes a good SKU format?

Go from broad to specific — category, then product, then variant — and finish with a short sequential number so near-identical products never collide. Keep the whole code short enough to read aloud, use a single separator throughout, and never encode price or stock level, because those change while a SKU should not.

How long should a SKU be?

Between eight and sixteen characters suits most catalogs. Shorter codes are quicker to key by hand and fit on small labels; longer codes carry more meaning but are easier to mistype. This tool caps every generated code at the maximum length you set, so a long product name never pushes the sequence number off the end.

How does the variant generator work?

Add attributes such as size, colour or pack, list the values for each, and the tool creates one row per combination — 4 sizes and 3 colours give 12 rows. You can clear any combinations you do not stock before creating them, and each new row then gets its own SKU from your format.

What happens if two products get the same SKU?

The conflicting rows are flagged rather than silently changed, because a duplicate SKU usually means your format is missing a distinguishing attribute. You get a suggestion for which component to add, or you can resolve the batch by appending numeric suffixes.

Is my product data uploaded anywhere?

No. CSV files are parsed in your browser and your catalog is saved only in this browser's local storage, so confidential supplier and pricing data never leaves your device.

Free tool

Free SKU generator and product variant builder

Design a SKU format once, then generate consistent codes for every product and variant in your catalog. Import a CSV, expand sizes and colours, catch duplicates, and send the results straight to the barcode generator — free, no sign-up, all in your browser.

Products

Swipe the table sideways to see every column.

Product catalog. Edit any cell, then generate SKUs for the selected rows.
	Product name	Brand	Category	Variant	Generated SKU	Barcode value	Status	Row actions
							Check
							Empty
							Empty

3 products0 with a SKU

Your catalog and SKU format are saved in this browser only — nothing is uploaded.

How to create SKUs for your products

1
Add or import your products
Type products into the table or import a CSV from your spreadsheet or point of sale.
2
Design your SKU format
Add components such as category, product name, variant and a sequential number, then reorder them until the live preview reads the way you want.
3
Expand variants
List sizes, colours or packs and the tool creates one row per combination, ready to be coded.
4
Generate, check and export
Generate SKUs for every row or just the selected ones, review any duplicates, then export a CSV or send the products straight to the barcode generator.

SKU format examples

Example SKU formats for different kinds of business
Business	Example SKU	Structure
Retail clothing	APP-TSH-BLK-M-001	Category, product, colour, size, sequence
Coffee roaster	COF-HOU-1KG-004	Category, blend, pack size, sequence
Hardware supplier	TLS-DRL-MAK-0012	Category, product, brand, sequence
Single location shop	PRD-0001	Prefix and sequence only

Whichever structure you pick, apply it to every product from now on. A format that is followed consistently is far more useful than a clever one that is only used for half the catalog.

Free SKU generator and product variant builder

Products

Components

How to create SKUs for your products

Add or import your products

Design your SKU format

Expand variants

Generate, check and export

SKU format examples

Frequently asked questions