A comprehensive comparison of every major wine e-label provider in Europe. Bottlebooks, U-Label, IMERO, Glasswise, APyS, LITTLEWINE, and more. Pricing models, features, and what matters.
David Wippel
Founder of Glasswise
Choosing an e-label provider is a long-term decision. Your QR codes will be printed on labels for years. Switching later is possible, and this guide shows you how, but it is easier to get the foundation right the first time. Here is how every major provider compares so you can make an informed choice.
Disclosure: This guide is written by the Glasswise team. We have tried to be fair and factual. We include our own strengths and limitations alongside every competitor, and we encourage you to evaluate several platforms before deciding.
Before comparing extra features, every e-label provider has to deliver the compliance basics mandated by EU Regulation 2021/2117:
Every provider listed below meets these requirements. The differences start with everything else: design, pricing model, data ownership, and how long your codes keep working.
| Provider | Pricing model | Brand design | Data hub | Marketing QR | Longevity | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottlebooks | Per new label/year | Logo only | Yes (PIM) | Non-EU redirect | Min. 10 years | Large operations, PIM needs |
| U-Label (Scantrust) | Tiered by label count | Template branding | No | Non-EU redirect | Enterprise SLA only | Enterprise, serialized QR |
| IMERO (e-label.eu) | Per new label, volume-based | Logo only | Import only | Non-EU redirect | Min. 10 years, insured | Done-for-you compliance |
| Glasswise | Flat annual rate, unlimited | Yes (full) | Yes (wine data) | Yes (full) | Wine-long, redirect if you leave | Brand-focused wineries |
| APyS | Bundled with ERP | No | Via ERP | No | Tied to ERP | Existing APyS users |
| LITTLEWINE | Free | No | No | No | Not guaranteed | Budget, privacy-focused |
| ScanThisWine | Free | No | No | No | Not guaranteed | Smallest producers |
What it is: A product information management (PIM) platform for the wine trade. E-labels are one module inside a broader system that syndicates a single product dataset across producers, importers, retailers, and trade events.
Pricing model: Charged per year, banded by how many new labels you publish. The first three labels are free, and you pay only for new labels, not for your back catalogue.
Strengths: Reviewed by Austrian, German, and Polish authorities, associations, and importers. Strong data validation with more than 50 checks. Genuinely capable when one dataset has to feed many trade partners at once. Supports GS1 Digital Link, and you can export your data and switch away.
Limitations: Branding is limited to a logo, with no full custom label design. The QR redirect is scoped to non-EU compliance, so it is not a marketing channel. No serialized or anti-counterfeit QR.
Best for: Larger operations that need a full PIM, not just e-labels.
Detailed comparison: Glasswise vs. Bottlebooks
What it is: An industry initiative from the European wine and spirits associations (CEEV and spiritsEUROPE), built and run on Scantrust's QR platform.
Pricing model: A free trial, then tiers priced by how many labels you publish per year, with an unlimited premium tier and a custom enterprise tier above that.
Strengths: Association-endorsed and compliance-first. Serialized (unique) QR codes and GS1 Digital Link support. Bulk creation by CSV or API. Scantrust's wider platform adds anti-counterfeiting for producers who need it.
Limitations: Branding stays at the template level (logo, colour, custom domain). Bulk import and smart redirection sit on the higher tiers. No central data hub, and no longevity guarantee outside an enterprise SLA.
Best for: Larger producers and spirits companies that want serialized codes on an association-backed platform.
Detailed comparison: Glasswise vs. U-Label
What it is: An established e-label platform that says thousands of wineries and partners already use it. The focus is fast, correct compliance with very little effort.
Pricing model: Charged per new label and scaled by volume, with three labels free to start and no ongoing cost for labels from past years.
Strengths: Collective QR codes for price lists, a single code that opens a whole list rather than one wine, which they position as unique. Automatic translation into all 27 EU languages, with geolocation handling for scans outside the EU. A done-for-you service where IMERO builds the label from your data. Labels stay online for at least 10 years, insured, and remain reachable after you cancel.
Limitations: Branding is limited to a logo. No central data management beyond import tools. No GS1 Digital Link stated on their own pages, so the identity behind the code is less portable.
Best for: Wineries that want a hands-off compliance service and price-list QR codes.
Detailed comparison: Glasswise vs. IMERO
What it is: A wine e-label and product-data platform built around brand design, data ownership, and QR codes that stay under your control.
Pricing model: One flat annual rate for unlimited e-labels, users, and updates, with a premium "Done For You" tier that adds a full concierge service.
Strengths: Full custom brand design, so the label looks like your winery instead of a generic template. A central wine-data hub that feeds e-labels, data sheets, and QR destinations from one source. "Scan with Glasswise" turns the mandatory QR into a marketing and loyalty channel that points wherever you choose. GS1 open rails, so the identity behind the code stays portable and yours. A redirect guarantee that holds even if you leave: we forward your printed codes to your new destination instead of letting them go dark. Producer-verified data and open APIs for ERP integration. German-native support.
Limitations: Smaller market presence than Bottlebooks or IMERO. No serialized QR codes or anti-counterfeit features.
Best for: Independent wineries that value brand design, want one predictable annual price, and want to own their data and their QR identity.
What it is: A wine-management ERP with nearly 40 years of history. The e-label is an add-on webservice ("SUP e-Label Webservice") wired into the APyS cellar book, not a standalone product.
Pricing model: Bundled with the ERP. There is no e-label you can buy on its own.
Strengths: For an existing APyS winery, compliance is close to automatic. Nutrition and ingredient data flow from the regulated cellar book through blending and bottling into a multilingual label, with no separate data entry. Labels support around twenty languages.
Limitations: The QR points at a proprietary address on elabel.apys.de, keyed to an internal ID, so the identity is neither yours nor a GS1 Digital Link. Leaving APyS means losing the destination behind your printed codes. No custom design, no standalone data hub, no marketing redirect.
Best for: Existing APyS customers who want the simplest path and accept the lock-in.
Detailed comparison: Glasswise vs. APyS
What it is: A free e-label tool from LITTLEWINE, a wine-knowledge platform. No commercial motive, no tracking.
Pricing model: Free.
Strengths: Zero cost, no tracking, unlimited labels, and automatic translation into the EU languages. Optional fields for details like elevation or farming.
Limitations: No business model that guarantees the labels stay online, no custom design, no data hub, no marketing features. If the platform stops, the labels behind your printed codes go dark.
Best for: Very small producers who want a free, privacy-minded tool and accept the continuity risk.
What it is: A free e-label generator. One short form per wine.
Pricing model: Free.
Strengths: No barrier to entry. Compliant labels with an auto-calculated nutrition table, recycling information, EU-language translation, and no tracking.
Limitations: The same risk as any free tool: no longevity or uptime guarantee, no design options, no data management. A code that later fails is the core risk.
Best for: A small producer who needs a valid compliance page quickly and accepts the risk.
Start with your priorities:
If cost is your main concern: Start with a free tool (LITTLEWINE, ScanThisWine) but understand the long-term risks. Read our analysis of why free e-labels may cost more in the long run.
If you need a PIM: Bottlebooks is the established choice for large-scale product data management. Glasswise offers a lighter alternative with a central wine-data hub that is simpler to run and puts design first.
If you need enterprise features: U-Label by Scantrust offers serialized QR codes and GS1 Digital Link, with Scantrust's wider anti-counterfeiting platform behind it.
If you want brand design and simplicity: Glasswise offers the only fully custom-designed e-labels on a single flat annual rate.
If you already use an ERP: Check whether your ERP offers e-labels (like APyS), and weigh the convenience against the vendor lock-in.
In most cases you keep the QR codes already on your bottles. A printed e-label QR points at a web address, and that address can be repointed. You keep your GS1 Digital Link or QR identity, we migrate your existing data in any format, you repoint the code to Glasswise, and nothing gets reprinted.
The move runs in a few short steps, and we do most of the work. You start a test account, send us your current e-label data in whatever format you have it, we set everything up, and you switch the redirect for your QR codes to the new destination. At the end you scan a few real bottles to confirm. Three things are in writing: you do not pay twice if you switch mid-period, the data migration is included at no extra cost, and the redirect guarantee holds even if you later leave Glasswise. The full walkthrough is in how to switch your e-label provider without reprinting QR codes, and the step-by-step is on our switch page.
Before committing to a provider, ask these:
We cover these in detail in our 5 factors guide for choosing the right e-label tool.
There is no single best e-label provider. The right choice depends on your winery's size, priorities, and budget. What matters most is choosing a solution that will serve you for years, because those QR codes on your bottles are going to be in circulation for a long time.
Whatever you decide, make sure the compliance is solid, your data is portable, and the identity behind your QR codes stays yours.
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