Create a barcode for Affinity Publisher or Designer

Affinity Designer and Affinity Publisher are two brilliantly designed, user-friendly apps which you can use to create all kinds of layouts and designs, including books, magazines, brochures, and more.

However, neither Affinity Designer nor Publisher allows you to create barcodes. They’re design apps and cannot therefore create correctly formatted barcodes that can be read by barcode scanners and comply with industry standards.

As Barcode Producer is an industry-standard barcode generator, it offers design capabilities that fit the standard requirements so that barcodes can be read with a barcode scanner such as the IntelliScanner Pro as well as with area imagers and portable data collectors.

On top of that, Barcode Producer’s workflow is just as user-friendly and its interface just as beautifully designed as the Affinity products. Here’s how you best create your barcodes for both Affinity Designer and Publisher.

Step 1

Create a barcode in Barcode Producer, then click the Save button. Barcode Producer will create a barcode in EPS, TIFF or PDF format. For best results in Affinity Designer and Publisher, choose PDF.

Leave the resolution at the default value or consult with your printer and either select one of the presets from the dropdown menu or select the Custom option and enter the resolution in the entry field.

Step 2

Open Affinity Designer or Publisher and drag the barcode graphic to the artboard or spread. Do not resize. Place it where you want it.

Step 3

Both Affinity Designer and Affinity Publisher will treat the barcode as a vector graphic, i.e. you won’t be able to change anything about it. Rasterizing the barcode will not change that.

The bottom line is to place and position the barcode but not alter it in any way. If you need to change its appearance, go back to Barcode Producer and start over again. That will ensure you’ll end up with the best results.

If you’ll be sending your Affinity Designer/Publisher layout to an industrial label printer, consult its user guide and set Barcode Producer to the advised resolution.

If you’re sending your Affinity Designer/Publisher file to an inkjet or laser printer, keep in mind that you need to use at least 300dpi in Barcode Producer and set your printer to its highest resolution. This will ensure the lines and spaces in your barcode are clean and readable and won’t cause any problems with barcode scanners.