PDF417 Generator

What PDF417 is

PDF417 is a stacked linear symbology defined by ISO/IEC 15438. Rather than a grid, it is a series of rows, each a small linear barcode, stacked into a block. The name comes from its structure: each pattern is 4 bars and 4 spaces spanning 17 modules.

Its useful property is capacity in a shape that a laser scanner can sweep. A single symbol holds up to about 1,800 text characters, which is why it ended up on documents that must carry a whole record rather than a lookup key — the data travels on the card itself, readable with no database behind it.

How to create one

Enter the data, then adjust the symbol shape if you need to fit a specific space:

1. Type or paste your content.
2. Data columns controls the aspect ratio. More columns give a wider, shorter symbol; fewer give a narrow, tall one. Auto picks a balanced shape.
3. Error correction level runs from 0 to 8. Higher levels add rows and survive more damage.
4. Download SVG for print — row alignment matters here, and a vector file keeps it exact.

Choosing an error correction level

PDF417's correction is measured in codewords rather than a percentage. Level 0 adds 2 correction codewords, and each level up roughly doubles the count: level 5 adds 64, level 8 adds 512. The standard recommends scaling with data length — level 2 for very short payloads, 3–4 for moderate ones, 5 for around 300–800 codewords.

Auto follows that recommendation. Raise it if the symbol will be handled, folded or printed on something that scuffs; a driving licence in a wallet is a harsher environment than a label in a warehouse.

Row height and why it is fixed here

The standard specifies a row height of at least three times the module width, and this tool always renders it at exactly 3:1. That ratio is not decoration — scanners rely on it to track from row to row. A symbol squashed vertically to fit a layout is a symbol that stops scanning, so the option to distort it is deliberately not offered.

Where PDF417 is used

Identity documents. The barcode on the back of a US or Canadian driving licence is PDF417, carrying the AAMVA-formatted record.

Travel. Boarding passes, both printed and on screen.

Shipping. Some carriers use it for detailed consignment data.

Government forms. Encoding form contents so a scan restores the data without re-keying.

Privacy and security

Everything is encoded on your device. PDF417 often carries personal data — names, dates of birth, licence numbers — and nothing you type here is transmitted, stored or logged. That is the whole point of doing it in the browser.

Limitations

Static content: once printed, it cannot be changed.

This tool produces a standard PDF417 symbol. It does not implement Macro PDF417 for splitting one payload across several symbols, and it does not build AAMVA driving-licence records for you — if you need that format, you must construct the field structure yourself and paste it in.

The compact variant drops the right row indicator to save width. It is part of the standard but not universally supported, so test your scanners before using it in production.