A UPC is a Universal Product Code, or the series of numbers that are found in the barcode of a product. (here's a helpful article on purchasing UPCs for your products)
UPCs, EANs, ISBNs, and GTINs are all similar, and in some cases, if you do not have a UPC readily available for a product, adding an EAN, ISBN, or GTIN can help a product reach better success on marketplaces.
To add a UPC to a SKU, here is an animation that shows how:
In the Catalog, click on a product to add the UPC.
Click 'Edit' on the left side of the screen.
In 'General Info' add the UPC and save.
Having a catalogue of SKUs that are outfitted with unique UPCs is very important for success on all marketplaces, and is most important for success on Walmart.
Walmart and UPCs:
To be listed successfully on Walmart, products must have unique UPCs, even if the products are a part of a pack.
For example, let's say I have a single waterbottle for sale on my store, and a 2-pack of the same waterbottle. In this case, the single waterbottle must have it's own unique UPC, and the 2-pack must have it's own unique UPC.
Having specific UPCs is key to getting traction on Walmart especially, since Walmart requires UPCs to be different for every product/SKU.
Understanding the Two Identifier Fields: UPC/EAN/GTIN/ISBN and Type
In Zentail's product editor, you'll notice there are two separate fields for product identifiers:
UPC/EAN/GTIN/ISBN — the actual barcode number (e.g.,
00759569458233)Type — a dropdown that declares what kind of identifier it is (e.g.,
UPC,EAN,GTIN, orISBN)
Zentail will automatically infer the Type based on the digit count of the number entered (12 digits = UPC, 13 digits = EAN, etc.). However, if the type is not being set correctly, you can explicitly set it — either manually in the product editor or in bulk via import.
Setting the Identifier Type via Import
To explicitly set both fields in bulk, include these two columns in your import file:
UPC/EAN/GTIN/ISBN → import field name:
UPC/EAN/ISBN/GTIN— the barcode number itselfType → import field name:
Standard Product Id Type— the identifier type. Accepted values:UPC,EAN,GTIN,ISBN
Example import columns:
sku | UPC/EAN/ISBN/GTIN | Standard Product Id Type |
MY-SKU-001 | 00759569458233 | GTIN |
💡 Tip: If you only import the barcode number without the Type field, Zentail will infer the type automatically. Include Standard Product Id Type when you need to ensure a specific type is set — for example, if products are not being recognized correctly on a channel.
For more information on running a bulk import, see Importing Data.