Article: You may have noticed that there are a wide variety of barcodes, some appearing like thin lines and others, like QR codes, which are more blocky in appearance. These barcode types are called symbologies, some of which include:  Plessey: Used for catalogs, store shelves, inventory UPC: Used for North America retail EAN-UCC: Used for international retail Codabar: Used for libraries, blood banks, airbills Code 39: Used for various purposes Code 128: Used for various purposes Code 11: Used for telephones Code 16K: 1D version of Code 128. QR Code: Public domain code from Nippon Denso ID Systems. Has the ability to encode Japanese Kanji and Kana characters. The information you want contained in your barcode will need to be translated to a suitable barcode format, like an alphanumeric string, for it to be properly read by scanners. You should have a general format in mind for how you will structure all barcodes for your particular purpose.  Many different kinds of information can be included in your barcode, but generally this information pertains to: identification, tracking, and inventory.  Consistent formatting will help make the translated information easier to read, and will make human processing of barcode information more efficient. "Alphanumeric" refers to a system that uses both letters and numbers. Now that you have your data properly organized, do an online search for a "String builder" for the barcode symbology you will be using. This will give you the converted text that you will need to use with a barcode font.  For example, you might search, "barcode string builder code 128." Some symbologies may use other inputs than simple alphanumeric. Do an online search of your chosen symbology to find how to convert your data to a suitable barcode format. To have the text you've converted to show up properly as a barcode, you'll need to input your barcode string into your Word document in the font for your symbology. There are many online sources for fonts, some free and some for pay, which you can find by searching your symbology (e.g. Code 39 font). Always exercise caution when downloading anything from the Internet. There is always the risk that you may get a virus or some other kind of malware. Cut and paste your converted barcode string into your word document. Highlight this text, and then change the font to the appropriate barcode font and your barcode should appear.
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Choose your barcode symbology. Choose your data to convert. Convert your data into proper barcode format with an online service. Download the right font for your barcode. Convert your barcode string into your word document.