Universal Product Codes (UPCs) have become ubiquitous in the retail industry. Those black and white zebra-stripe barcodes allow retailers, distributors and other businesses to automatically track product inventory levels, gather sales data, ring up purchases and more.
However, for UPCs to be useful, you need a way to convert those black and white bars into meaningful product information. That‘s where UPC lookup APIs come in. These APIs give you instant access to databases with product specs, descriptions, pricing and other details on millions of UPC-coded items.
In this guide, we’ll explain what exactly UPC lookup APIs are, why businesses rely on them, and the top API options available today.
What Are UPC Lookup APIs and Why Are They Useful?
A UPC lookup API is a web-based software interface that enables you to send a product’s UPC barcode number and automatically retrieve key product data back instantly.
UPC lookup APIs tap into large product databases that catalogue millions of items sold by thousands of major brands and retailers. By calling the API with a product’s 12-digit UPC code, you can pull incredibly useful information including:
- Product name/title – The official name for that product
- Brand name – Manufacturer or source brand
- Product descriptions – Detailed specifications about the product
- Product image – Main photo of the product
- Categorization – The product category and subcategories
- Size & weight data – Product dimensions and shipping weight
- Pricing info – MSRP, retail price ranges
- Inventory statuses – Real-time visibility into an item‘s availability
- Nutritional data – Ingredient lists, allergen specifics, calories, etc. for food
This product data can then be fed into business systems like inventory management platforms, warehouse apps, ecommerce sites, barcode scanning software and more to enable advanced tracking, insights and automation capabilities.
Key examples of how companies leverage UPC lookup API data include:
- Automatically updating product specs and availability in ecommerce platforms when new inventory shipments arrive
- Enabling mobile barcode scanning apps that store or retail employees use to quickly pull up inventory status and product details
- Building Smart supply chain systems that track products using UPC codes through every distribution touchpoint
- Pulling real-time competitive pricing data to optimize margins and remain price competitive
- Providing ingredients, allergy and nutrition details on food packages to shoppers via apps and websites
As you can see, UPC lookup APIs deliver an invaluable productivity tool for retailers, warehouses, ecommerce merchants and more by unlocking data stored in the UPC barcodes slapped on billions of products.
Below we analyze 10 top options to consider when picking a UPC lookup API for your business.
Top 10 UPC Lookup APIs
1. Barcode Lookup
Barcode Lookup provides one of the most full-featured and precise UPC lookup APIs on the market. Their database spans over 5 million barcoded products across thousands of brands.
Key Features:
- Search by UPC code or product name/description
- Data returned includes prices, product specs, categorization, manufacturer details and more
- Results returned in easy-to-parse JSON format
- Bulk barcode lookup enabled
- 99.9% uptime reliability
Barcode Lookup offers four pricing tiers based on usage needs:
- Starter: Up To 1,500 lookups/month for $14/month
- Advanced: Up To 10,000 lookups/month for $39/month
- Professional: Up to 100,000 lookups/month for $99/month
- Enterprise: Custom packages for high volume needs
2. Algopix
Algopix is a popular platform that focuses specifically on ecommerce, providing UPC lookups supplemented with real-time pricing data from leading retailers.
Key Features:
- Data sourced from Amazon, eBay, Walmart and thousands more merchants
- Competitive pricing analytics enables smart repricing strategies
- Results fully customizable – choose product specs you want returned
- Category-specific data available for retailers
- Bulk UPC code lookup supported
- Integrates with inventory and pricing systems
Pricing starts at $149/month for up to 100,000 lookups across their suite of ecommerce APIs. Bulk discounts available.
3. GO-UPC
GO-UPC leverages advanced machine learning technology to identify products and return highly detailed data from UPC barcode lookups.
Key Features:
- Enormous database with 360 million products
- International database spans every product category
- Advanced matching algorithms minimize mismatches
- Nutritional data, ingredients listing and other specialty product details provided
- Bulk UPC lookup available
- Integrates easily with ecommerce platforms and inventory systems
Pricing tiers based on monthly lookup volumes:
- Developer: 15,000 lookups for $19.95/month
- Startup: 50,000 lookups for $59.95/month
- Enterprise: 200,000+ lookups. Custom pricing.
4. UPCitemdb
UPCitemdb taps into a database of over 450 million products across thousands of brands to deliver fast and accurate barcode lookups.
Key Features:
- APIs accessible via 85+ programming languages
- Results returned in XML, JSON and CSV formatting
- Bulk UPC code querying enabled
- Powerful database search filters (brand, product type, etc)
- Nutritional data, ingredients and specialty product info included
UPCitemdb offers four plans:
- Free: 100 daily lookups
- Dev: 15,000 lookups for $25/month
- Business: 50,000 lookups for $69/month
- Corporate: 200,000+ lookups. Custom pricing.
5. Buycott
Buycott focuses specifically on connecting consumers with product information they care about – sustainability ratings, ethical sourcing details, allergen specifics and more.
Key Features:
- Data sourced from 150M+ UPC-marked products globally
- Advanced matching algorithms minimize mismatching
- Results fully customizable – choose product specs returned
- Ethical brand ratings provided (labor policies, environment impact, etc.)
- Ingredient listings, allergen and nutritional data included
- Bulk barcode lookup available
- Integrates easily with retail apps and websites
Pricing starts at $49/month for 5,000 UPC lookups. Volume discounts available.
6. UPC Database
UPC Database has created an extensive catalogue of over 1.75 million consumer products to power its UPC lookup API.
Key Features:
- Search by UPC or product name/description
- Data returned includes prices, categorization, product specs and manufacturer info
- Bulk barcode search enabled
- Results provided in XML or JSON formatting
- Specialty access available to restricted item data (tobacco, firearms, etc)
Pricing tiers based on monthly lookup allowance:
- Free: 100 lookups
- Hobbyist: 500 lookups for $9/month
- Standard: 5,000 lookups for $39/month
- Professional: 50,000 lookups for $249/month
7. Digit-Eyes
Digit-Eyes offers an enterprise-grade UPC lookup API capable of handling extremely high volumes with minimal latency.
Key Features:
- Enormous product database spanning 331+ million UPCs
- Optimized to deliver blazing fast sub-15ms response times
- Search by UPC code or any product detail
- Validated connections ensures max uptime
- Results available in JSON, CSV or XML feeds
- Seamless integration into any platform or app
Pricing starts at $150/month for up to 20,000 lookups. Volume discounts apply.
8. Zebra Savanna
Zebra’s barcode lookup API leverages their 40+ years industry experience to deliver enterprise-grade UPC lookup capabilities.
Key Features:
- Giant product database provides real-time visibility into inventory
- Results include 10+ product specs like pricing, dimensions, imagery and more
- Optimized to handle heavy bulk UPC code requests
- Multiple pricing models available based on usage needs
- Integrates easily with existing architecture and programs
Zebra offers three pricing packages for Savanna:
- Free: 100 lookups/month
- Basic: $150/month for 5,000 lookups
- Enterprise: $500/month for 100,000 lookups
9. Barcode Spider API
Barcode Spider has one of the largest UPC databases accessible via API, with details on over 3 million products and growing.
Key Features:
- Search products by UPC code or any identifiable product detail
- Results returned with 10+ product specs
- Bulk barcode lookups supported
- Offer 99.9% guaranteed uptime on requests
- Integrates easily with apps via REST API
Barcode Spider has three plans available based on usage requirements:
- Lite: 1,000 monthly lookups for $9/month
- Basic: 250,000 monthly lookups for $149/month
- Dev: 2,000,000+ lookups, Custom pricing
10. GoDataFeed
GoDataFeed takes a specialty approach – focusing its enormous 500M product UPC database specifically around supporting ecommerce sites with pricing analytics, inventory feeds and more.
Key Features:
- Real-time price tracking provides dynamic repricing data
- Results include 10+ product categories to pick from
- Machine learning filters out inaccurate or duplicate products listings
- Inventory feeds to automatically sync products across channels
- Integrates easily with all ecommerce platforms and shopping carts
GoDataFeed offers four plans, with the cheapest starting at $67/month for 250,000 API requests.
Key Factors When Comparing UPC Lookup APIs
If reviewing the lineup of UPC lookup options seems overwhelming, focus your comparison on these core factors:
Product Database Size – APIs with larger databases offer better coverage of even obscure product UPC codes. Look for at least 100 million products.
Supported Programming Languages – More languages enable easier integration into your tech stack. JavaScript, Python and Java are most essential.
Pricing per Lookup – Cheaper per lookup costs enable higher usage before you hit pricing ceilings. Under 10 cents per is solid.
Bulk Lookup Limits – For large volume barcode scanning needs, higher thresholds prevent throttling issues.
Customer Support – Look for US-based reps and short response times for implementation help.
Response Times – APIs with optimized databases offer faster lookup speeds – critical for real-time apps. Under 100ms is good.
Reviewing strengths across these core categories makes it easier to select the right barcode lookup API for your specific business needs and use case.
Summary
UPC barcode technology underpins inventory management, sales analytics, ecommerce and much more of the modern retail world. But to unlock the magic in those black and white zebra code stripes, you need a UPC lookup API.
The UPC search APIs profiled above make it easy and affordable to tap into huge product databases spanning every category and corner of industry. Whether you need to empower mobile barcode scanning apps, optimize pricing in ecommerce stores or gain end-to-end inventory transparency – these barcode lookup tools have you covered.
Compare options across the metrics that matter most for your implementation goals – querying volumes, tech stack, pricing thresholds and more. And leverage the incredible productivity gains, automation perks and data superpowers unlocked with UPC lookup APIs today. The retail revolution awaits!
