What is a Datalogic 2 of 5 barcode?
Datalogic 2 of 5, also known as China Post 2 of 5, is a numeric variant of Matrix 2 of 5. It has been used by China Post for mail processing and appears in some older systems built around Datalogic scanners.
Data characters are encoded the same way as Matrix 2 of 5, with each digit made of three bars and two spaces, two of them wide. Only the start and stop patterns differ, so a scanner must have the Datalogic or China Post variant enabled to read it.
It is a niche, legacy symbology. Choose it only when a postal or internal system specifically requires it; for general numeric labels, Interleaved 2 of 5 or Code 128 is far more widely supported.
What data can Datalogic 2 of 5 hold?
Digits 0-9 only, any length. Spaces are removed. An optional modulo 10 check digit can be added.
Recommended size
Keep a quiet zone of at least 10 times the narrowest bar on each side. Test a printed sample with the target scanner, since this variant is not enabled on many readers by default.
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Frequently Asked Questions
They encode digits the same way but use different start and stop patterns. A reader configured for Matrix 2 of 5 will not necessarily read Datalogic 2 of 5.
China Post has used this variant for mail sorting, so some scanners and software list it under that name.
No. Retail products use EAN or UPC, and general numeric labels are better served by Code 128 or Interleaved 2 of 5.