Comparison

Bar vs Barcode Scanners

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Bar

Scan barcodes and QR codes to save, email, copy, or search for information online. Export scanned data and photos to your PC for use in other applications. Ideal for small businesses, libraries, or home organization.

Highlights
  • Scan barcodes and QR codes
  • Save scanned codes for later
  • Email scanned codes
  • Copy/paste codes into other apps
  • Search scanned codes on the web
  • Export data and photos via iTunes file sharing
  • Integrate with web apps via URL scheme
Features
Read full description

-------------- What this app will do for me ? -------------- It will scan barcodes (read "other info" for list of formats supported) and send scanned codes by email, or save them for later use, or paste/copy codes into other apps, or search on the web. It will not check for prices. Also, with iTunes file sharing, you can export the list of scanned codes (and photo taken) to your PC (for use in Excel etc.) Great for small stores, library, and also at home ! ------------ Awards ------------ - over 4.000.000 download - TOP APP in his category in the italian store (may 2011) - TOP 25 APP in his category in many national stores - Suggested by iTunes -------------- How does this app works ? -------------- To start the scan, tap on the "START SCAN FROM" buttons (or shake te device), and the camera will start, ready to scan a code. Now make the camera look at a barcode. Please make sure your camera is correctly aligned with the barcode to scan (vertical or horizontal, not oblique). Please make sure that the code is well lighted and on focus (move the device to get well the code). When the barcode is detected, it will be surrounded by a green square and it will be decoded and written in the "SCANNED CODES" list. If you have problems to get the code scanned, when the camera is on, tap the info button to get help on how get a successful scan. With your codes scanned, you can save them for later use, or mail them, of search for them on the web, or paste into other apps (last scanned code is copied into the pasteboard), or copy them (and photo taken) to your PC for use in your apps with iTunes file sharing. Tap on "ACTIONS WITH SCANNED BARCODES" to select what you want to do with the scanned codes. You can also save the photos taken in your Camera Roll. ONLY FOR USERS THAT DID DISABLE THE ADS TAPPING ON "REMOVE ADS" BUTTON: Now you can use this app to scan barcodes with your web apps. If you have a web app that you need to input barcodes, you can start the app, scan barcode, and return barcode content, with just one http url ! Just use an url like this: bar-code://scan?callback=[callback url] (where "callback" is the url return url to your web app) Barcode content will be added at the end: ?barcode=[barcode content][&other parameters] So, for example, using this url: bar-code://scan?callback=http://www.mysite.com the callback url after barcode scan will be http://www.mysite.com?barcode=1234567890 if you need extra parameters, just add them to the callback url bar-code://scan?callback=http://www.mysite.com&user=roberto then the callback url after barcode scan will be http://www.mysite.com?barcode=1234567890&user=roberto You can test the app is working with this url: http://www.pw2.it/iapps/test-bar-code.php THIS WILL WORK ONLY FROM THE DEVICE WEB BROWSER ! -------------- Other info -------------- Supports EAN-8, UPC-E, ISBN-10, UPC-A, EAN-13, ISBN-13, Interleaved 2 of 5, Code 39, QR Code, Code 128, Code 93, Farmacode, GS1 DataBar, GS1 DataBar Expanded, GS1 2-digit add-on, GS1 5-digit add-on, EAN/UPC composite formats, Codabar and DataBar. SCAN WORKS ONLY IF YOU HAVE A CAMERA Suggested devices: iPhone 3GS or greater (NO 3G OR OLD IPOD OR IPAD OR iPAD2, so please note that not all codes will be decoded easily on those devices). To dismiss the keyboard, tap anywhere on the background May contain ads. -------------- Please remember to check our new barcode scanner app with lot of new options and link to Mac PC ! https://itunes.apple.com/app/barcode-professional/id1075096265?mt=8 You can easily create QR-Codes with our new app "QR-Code creator" https://itunes.apple.com/app/qr-code-creator/id1197340445?l=it&ls=1&mt=8 --------------

About

Barcode Scanners

This app offers robust barcode scanning capabilities, supporting over 30 different types including QR, UPC, and Data Matrix. It provides powerful parsing for industry-standard formats like driver's licenses and GS1 codes, simplifying data extraction.

Highlights
  • Scan over 30 barcode types
  • QR code scanning
  • UPC scanning
  • Data Matrix scanning
  • GS1 code parsing
  • Driver's license data parsing
Features
Read full description

Barcode scanning made simple! Use this powerful app to easily scan over 30 different types of barcodes, including QR, UPC, GS1, Data Matrix, PDF417, DotCode, and many others. The Cognex Barcode Scanners application reads all major barcode symbologies, including Aztec Code, Codabar, Code 11, Code 25 (Interleaved, Industrial, COOP, Matrix and ITF-14), Code 39, Code 93, Code 128, Data Matrix, DotCode, EAN, ISBN, GS1 DataBar, MaxiCode, MSI Plessey, PDF417, Micro PDF417, Postal Codes, QR Code (Micro and Standard), TELEPEN and UPC barcode types, as well as GS1 sub-types like GS1 QR Code, GS1 Data Matrix and GS1-128. The app also provides powerful parsers to examine industry standard formatted barcodes more easily such as AAMVA (US and Canadian Driver’s Licenses), GS1, IUID, Structured Carrier Messages (MaxiCode), and more! To learn more about Cognex's high-speed barcode scanning and computer vision solutions, visit https://www.cognex.com.

Screenshots

Bar3 screens
Barcode Scanners4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Barcode Scanners at none against Bar's 1. Barcode Scanners also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 64%) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.4). Bar's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Bar sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Barcode Scanners asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bar ships an update every 2 months, Barcode Scanners every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Bar versus Barcode Scanners: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBarBarcode Scanners
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.6 (810 ratings) — better
Positive reviews64.0% of reviews87.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings—810 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.49.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB35 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoberto SonzogniCognex Corporation

Customer experience

Bar

Written reviews186 reviews
Positive64.0%
Neutral4.3%
Negative31.7%

Barcode Scanners

All ratings808 ratings
Positive91.1%
Neutral3.6%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews188 reviews
Positive87.8%
Neutral3.7%
Negative8.5%

User reviews

Bar

From App Store reviews

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast scanning
  • 👍 Simple and effective
  • 📤 Ability to email scanned barcodes
  • 🔍 Reads various barcode types

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy after updates
  • 🚫 Doesn't work on some devices
  • 💤 Slow or inaccurate scanning
  • 📢 Intrusive ads

Barcode Scanners

From 810 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and accurate scanning
  • 👍 Reliable and easy to use
  • 🔒 No data collection
  • 💡 Supports wide range of barcode types
  • 👍 Excellent parsing and decoding capabilities

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezing issues
  • 🐛 Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
  • 🐛 Duplicate delay feature not working as expected
  • 🐛 Export to CSV not functioning properly

Bugs and requests

Bar

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Scan history list disappearing
  • Crashing when switching camera modes
  • Inability to scan certain barcode types

Requested features

3 requests
  • Direct link to open scanned URLs
  • Option to save scanned barcodes in folders
  • Ability to export data to spreadsheets

Barcode Scanners

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashing after iOS 12.3.1 update
  • Unable to scan certain barcode types (e.g. GS1 DataMatrix)
  • Frozen camera view after initial scan

Requested features

4 requests
  • Option to disable tips/tooltips on startup
  • Batch export/logging of scan history
  • Ability to display non-readable characters
  • Deeper Shortcuts integration

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Bar

One-time1
  • Remove ads and enable web app mode$0.99
None

Barcode Scanners

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Bar free?
Bar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Barcode Scanners free?
Barcode Scanners is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Bar or Barcode Scanners have ads?
Neither Bar nor Barcode Scanners shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bar or Barcode Scanners?
Bar ships an update every 2 months, and Barcode Scanners every 5 months. Most recently, Bar was updated on September 29, 2026 and Barcode Scanners on September 27, 2026.

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