IATA 2 of 5
A variant of Standard 2 of 5 standardized for airline baggage handling, where only the bar widths encode digits.
IATA 2 of 5 Specification
| Character set | Digits 0-9 only |
| Data length | Variable; fixed segments in baggage applications |
| Check digit | None mandatory (application-dependent) |
| Density | Low — comparable to Standard 2 of 5 |
| Module width (X-dimension) | Application-defined by IATA resolutions |
| Print ratio | Wide:narrow ratio typically 1:3 for baggage scanning |
| Magnification | Application-defined |
| Quiet zone | 10X on each side |
| Standard | IATA Resolution 740 family |
Not generated by barcodegen.net
IATA 2 of 5 is documented here for completeness, but our free generator does not produce this symbology. The closest supported format is ITF (Interleaved 2 of 5).
What Is IATA 2 of 5?
IATA 2 of 5 is the air-transport adaptation of two-of-five encoding, used on baggage tags and cargo labels within airport baggage handling systems. It shares the five-bar, two-wide character structure of Standard 2 of 5 but with start/stop patterns and application rules defined by IATA resolutions for the air transport chain.
Baggage handling worldwide has progressively migrated to barcode frameworks based on IATA Resolution 740 (Code 2 of 5 variants and later PDF417 and RFID hybridization), and many airports now layer RFID over the optical tags. Outside airline baggage ecosystems, the symbology has essentially no role; for new digit-only labels, ITF or Code 128C dominate.
Common Applications
- Airline baggage tags and sortation
- Air cargo handling labels
Related Barcode Types
A dense digits-only linear barcode that interleaves bar and space character pairs — logistics workhorse for numeric data.
The original 1960s two-of-five numeric symbology encoding one digit per five bars — the direct ancestor of Interleaved 2 of 5.
A stacked-linear 2D code carrying up to 1,850 text characters — the workhorse of IDs, boarding passes, and transport documents.