FNSKU and Transparency Barcodes: Everything Amazon Sellers Need to Know

Are you an FBA seller wanting to protect your brand from counterfeiters and increase customer trust? If so, you might be interested in Amazon’s Transparency program and FNSKU barcodes. These are two ways to ensure that your products are authentic and unique to you. Using either (or both) require some additional steps and costs but can greatly increase protection of your brand and trust amongst customers.

FNSKU Barcode VS Amazon Transparency Barcode

FNSKU Barcodes

FNSKU stands for Fulfillment Network Stock Keeping Unit, and it is a unique UPC code sellers can elect to use for each product they sell. The purpose of the code is to assure the physical units shipped to FBA are stored separately from units sent by another reseller. In short, FNSKUs prevent co-mingling of a seller’s inventory in the Amazon FCs.

Sellers can typically choose between utilizing FNSKUs or Manufacturer barcodes when setting up a new product in Seller Central. FNSKUs are also known as Amazon barcodes and will start with X00 whereas a Manufacturer barcode will appear as a 12-digit UPC code. If using FNSKUs, Amazon will issue a unique barcode the seller is required to affix to the product which covers all other barcodes on the packaging. When utilizing Manufacturer barcodes, the physical product sent by a seller is stored in one central bin along with other products with the same UPC sent from other sellers. When a consumer makes a purchase, Amazon pulls a random product out of that bin, meaning a customer may purchase from one seller, but receive another seller’s physical inventory.

Amazon does not charge for the use of FNSKUs, so the cost associated is limited to the cost of labeling the products, if a seller labels themselves. Amazon can provide the labels to a seller to print out and affix to the products themselves, or a seller can generate it themself as long as they have the necessary information on the label (product condition, FNSKU, and short description/title of the product). For those who don’t have the capability or don’t want to hassle with labeling, Amazon will label with FNSKUs for $.55/unit (price at the time this article was written).

With costs being so minimal, FNSKUs are recommended for nearly all the brands we represent, especially those with a premium product, and/or those with products that are nationally distributed to many retail outlets. It is not uncommon for unscrupulous or less careful Amazon sellers to obtain older products with worn packaging or even ship counterfeit products into Amazon. This could be extremely damaging to brand reputation if a consumer purchases from the manufacturer on Amazon but receives damaged or counterfeit products.

To utilize FNSKUs, a seller must select this option when creating new products or SKUs in their Seller Central catalog. It’s important that sellers set the barcode type at item setup because each Seller Central SKU is unique, meaning to change from manufacturing to FNSKUs after a product is set up requires a new SKU in Seller Central, and often causes logistical challenges.

To set the barcode type to FNSKU for all Seller Central SKUs, follow these directions:

1. In Seller Central, click on the gear icon in the top right
2. Select “Fulfillment by Amazon”
3. Scroll down to the section titled FBA Product Barcode Preference
4. Select the default preference

From there, a seller needs to generate the FNSKU label by doing the follow:

1. After setting the default barcode preference, add items to the catalog
2. Under Manage All Inventory, select the checkbox on the left
3. Select the … on the right-hand side
4. Select Change to Fulfilled by Amazon
5. Complete any necessary actions, such as fulling out dangerous good information before confirming the barcode preference and selecting List as FBA
6. Amazon will then automatically generate a FNSKU

To view the FNSKUs for each product, go to Manage All Inventory (there should be a settings icon on the right next to All Filters; select FNSKU column if it is not already displayed). Sellers can also download a report of all their FNSKUs by:

1. Go to Reports
2. Click on Inventory Reports
3. Click on Amazon-fulfilled Inventory
4. View the FNSKU under the column labelled fulfillment-channel SKU

Once the FNSKUs have been collected, a seller can either generate and print their own 2D Code 128 barcodes or print the ones Amazon created for them. When a seller is ready to ship their inventory, Amazon has additional information here regarding FNSKU barcodes.

Amazon Transparency Barcodes

Amazon Transparency is a voluntary initiative aiming to prevent counterfeit products from reaching customers. By enrolling in the program, FBA sellers can enhance their brand reputation and customer trust.

Using an Amazon transparency barcode on your inventory allows customers to scan it upon delivery to verify all the product’s information, including manufacture date and location. The Amazon transparency barcode looks different from your FNSKU barcode. Both barcodes need to be easily visible on your products and not covered.

Due to the number of sellers across Amazon, it quickly became increasingly difficult for the platform to track potential counterfeits. Thus, the transparency program was created in 2017. You can get transparency codes by signing up here.

How Do Barcodes Protect FBA Sellers?

If you’ve already gone into your Seller Central account to notify Amazon that your products will arrive at fulfillment centers with FNSKU barcodes affixed, then Amazon will instantly know if a counterfeit product arrives as it won’t have your FNSKU barcode. Even if this was a mistake on your part (say, you forgot to add it), Amazon will still open an investigation as a proper measure to prevent any rogue resellers from potentially reaching your customers.

As for transparency codes, we speculate that Amazon saw an increase in returns due to inauthentic products entering the marketplace (i.e. customers buying and returning items claiming they were fakes) leading to Amazon’s investment in the Transparency program. It also has other benefits for the giant marketplace like building trust amongst high fashion brands or popular consumer electronics brands who may have been hesitant to sell on the platform beforehand.

While FNSKU barcodes mainly protect FBA sellers, transparency QR codes reinforce Amazon’s stance on a brand-first mentality by showing consumers they have control over products received. They are both powerful ways to protect your brand from counterfeiters and increase customer trust on Amazon.