Best tablets for barcode scanning and inventory in 2026

The ranking

Our picks for scanning

1. 

   1 Best overall for scanning

   BARTEC ET60/65EX2 Android

   BARTEC · Rugged tablet, Ex version

   Certified for

   Zone 2/22

   Marking

   II 3G Ex ic op is IIC T4 Gc

   Certification

   ATEX + IECEx, Class I Division 2

   Operating system

   Android 14

   Security updates

   Until December 2031 (unconfirmed)

   Weight

   1074 g

   When a team scans all day, in stores, at goods receipt and at the line, a scan engine inside the tablet beats a camera. The BARTEC ET60/65EX2 Android can be ordered with an SE55 1D/2D Advanced Range scan engine, and a dedicated scan key sits beside three programmable keys, so a scan is one press. An internal supercapacitor keeps the tablet running while the battery is changed, so a shift does not stop for a reboot, and BARTEC quotes up to 10 hours indoors on the standard battery. The 10.1-inch display reaches 1,000 nits and works with gloves or a stylus, NFC is built in for tags, and it survives a 1.5 m drop to concrete.

   It is intrinsically safe to Ex ic IIC T4 with dust group IIIC, which covers conductive dust, for Zone 2/22 under ATEX and IECEx. The North American types add Class I Division 2 (Groups A to D) and Class II Division 2 (Groups F and G); the Division listing applies to those part numbers only. It runs Android 14 with an upgrade path to Android 16.

   The limits: it is certified for Zone 2/22 only, and the scan engine changes the Ex marking (“op is”, inherently safe optical radiation), so check the certificate for the version you buy. The battery is changed and charged outside the hazardous area, and its Ex dust marking includes IP64 (dust-tight, protected against splashing water). It weighs 1,074 g. The December 2031 security-update date is Zebra’s date for the ET60/ET65 the tablet is built on, and BARTEC says it needs a LifeGuard service contract, so we treat it as unconfirmed and do not rank on it.

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2. 

   2 Best for scanning in Zone 1

   ecom Tab-Ex 05 DZ1

   ecom (Pepperl+Fuchs) · Dedicated Ex tablet

   Certified for

   Zone 1/21

   Marking

   II 2G Ex db ia IIC T6 Gb

   Certification

   ATEX + IECEx, Class I Division 1

   Operating system

   Android 16

   Security updates

   Q1 2032 (maker’s statement)

   Weight

   1122 g

   Where the area is classified Zone 1/21, the ecom Tab-Ex 05 DZ1 is the tablet to start with, with one caveat that decides how you use it: it has no scan engine inside. It scans with the ecom Ident-Ex 02 wireless 1D/2D scanner, an accessory that carries its own Ex approval for Zone 1/21 and Division 1, or with its 13 MP autofocus camera and an app. The scanner is a second device to carry, so teams that scan all day should trial the two-device set-up first.

   The tablet itself is a flameproof (Ex db ia) design certified for IIC T6 with dust group IIIC under ATEX and IECEx, with Class I and II Division 1 and Class III listings and national approvals including Inmetro (Brazil), KC (Korea) and South Africa. It is an 8-inch Android tablet with IP68, MIL-STD-810H, glove and wet-hand touch, a programmable function key and an S Pen, and ecom lists a camera-free version for sites that restrict cameras. ecom states security updates until 2032, a date our data flags as unconfirmed.

   The limits: the battery is not user-replaceable and there is no hot swap, the certificate allows charging only outside the hazardous area, and the screen is 600 nits. It weighs 1,122 g. The certificate says not to use it near processes that generate high electrostatic charges.

   View full details + Add to compare✓ In your comparison ecom Tab-Ex 05 DZ1
3. 

   3 Best compact scanner tablet

   Getac ZX80-EX

   Getac · Rugged tablet, Ex version

   Certified for

   Zone 2/22

   Marking

   II 3G Ex ic op is IIC T4 Gc

   Certification

   ATEX + IECEx

   Operating system

   Android 15

   Security updates

   Until February 2029 (unconfirmed)

   Weight

   780 g

   For scanning on the move in tight spaces, along racking, up ladders and across a site, the Getac ZX80-EX is the compact choice. At 780 g it is the lightest of the five, and the 8-inch display reaches 1,000 nits. A 1D/2D imager and NFC are factory options, and it adds a 16 MP rear camera, 12 GB of memory on a Qualcomm QCS6490 running Android 15, IP67 and a 1.8 m drop rating, the highest stated drop height on this page.

   It is intrinsically safe to Ex ic op is IIC T4 with dust group IIIC (T130 °C) for Zone 2/22 under IECEx, rated from −21 °C to +55 °C.

   The limits: it is certified for Zone 2/22 only, and our data holds an IECEx certificate but no published ATEX certificate and no North American listing. Hot swap is not stated for the EX version and the battery is changed outside the hazardous area, so shift-long scanning needs a spare battery plan. Getac’s security-update date of February 2029 is for the standard ZX80, and Getac lists no separate date for the EX version, so we treat it as unconfirmed. The IECEx certificate names the model with a “c” suffix and not the generation, so we matched it to this version ourselves, and that match is unconfirmed.

   View full details + Add to compare✓ In your comparison Getac ZX80-EX
4. 

   4 Best for Windows warehouse software

   ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2

   ecom (Pepperl+Fuchs) · Dedicated Ex tablet

   Certified for

   Zone 2/22

   Marking

   II 3G Ex ic op is IIC T4 Gc IP64

   Certification

   ATEX + IECEx, Class I Division 2

   Operating system

   Windows 11 Pro, version 25H2

   Security updates

   Supported while kept on a current Windows 11 version

   Weight

   1200 g

   Warehouse, stores and dispensing teams whose software runs on Windows need a Windows tablet with a scanner, and the ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2 offers both. It runs Windows 11 Pro on an Intel Core i5-1235U with 16 GB of memory, and the 11.6-inch Full HD display reaches 1,000 nits. A Honeywell N670X 1D/2D scan engine is a factory option that is Ex-certified as part of the unit, there is a barcode/camera touch button, and ecom lists a camera-free version for sites that restrict cameras.

   It is intrinsically safe to Ex ic op is IIC T4 for Zone 2/22 under ATEX (a voluntary certificate of conformity from Bureau Veritas) and IECEx, with Class I Division 2 (Groups A to D) and Class II Division 2 listings for North America, and approvals including Inmetro (Brazil), KC (Korea), CCC (China) and Japan. Windows 11 stays supported as long as it is kept on a current version.

   The limits: its dust group is IIIB, so it is not rated for conductive metal dust, and it is Zone 2/22 only. Its ambient range starts at −10 °C against −20 °C or −21 °C on the other picks, it is IP64, it weighs 1,200 g, and our data lists no hot swap, so the user-replaceable battery (43.29 Wh) is changed outside the hazardous area.

   View full details + Add to compare✓ In your comparison ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2
5. 

   5 Best scanning tablet for multi-country sites

   BARTEC Agile S NI

   BARTEC · Dedicated Ex tablet

   Certified for

   Zone 2/22

   Marking

   II 3G Ex ic IIC T4 Gc

   Certification

   ATEX + IECEx + UKEX, Class I Division 2

   Operating system

   Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC

   Security updates

   Until January 2032

   Weight

   1200 g

   For an operator that runs warehouses and plants in several countries, one tablet with the paperwork for all of them saves repeated approvals. The BARTEC Agile S NI is the pick for that. It carries ATEX, IECEx and UKEX certificates for Zone 2/22, a Class I Division 2 listing, and approvals including Inmetro (Brazil), KC (Korea), CCC (China) and Japan. It is the only one of the five with a UKEX certificate in our data.

   Its scanner is not a factory option: a Honeywell N6600 1D/2D imager is built in, with an HF RFID and NFC reader, and an integrated bridge battery allows a hot swap. It runs Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2021 on an Intel Core i5-7300U with an 800-nit 10.1-inch display, and Microsoft supports that edition with security updates until January 2032.

   The limits: it is built on older technology than the other four, with a Kaby Lake processor and Windows 10, and its dust group is IIIB, so it is not rated for conductive metal dust. It is Zone 2/22 only, rated from −20 °C to +50 °C, IP64 in its marking, MIL-STD-810G rather than a stated drop height, 1,200 g, with BARTEC quoting up to 8 hours on the battery. The battery is changed outside the hazardous area.

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Before you buy

What a scanning tablet must show

How a tablet scans decides how much of your work it can do, and in a hazardous area the scanner must be certified with the tablet. Check these points against the version you plan to buy.

• Built in, accessory or camera

  A built-in engine needs no extra device. An accessory such as the ecom Ident-Ex 02 is a second device to carry. A camera with an app works on any tablet but is not a dedicated scanner. In our data no current Zone 1 tablet has an engine built in.

• Factory option

  On the BARTEC ET60/65EX2 and the Getac ZX80-EX and F110-EX G7 the imager is a factory option, and on the ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2 the scan engine is optional. Order the version that has it, and check its certificate.

• Ex marking with a scan engine

  A scan engine can change the Ex marking. The BARTEC ET60/65EX2 with the SE55 is marked “op is”, for inherently safe optical radiation. The certificate covers both versions, so match the marking to the one you buy.

• Dust group

  Metal dust is conductive and needs dust group IIIC. The BARTEC ET60/65EX2 and the Getac ZX80-EX are IIIC; the ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2 and the BARTEC Agile S NI are IIIB.

• Battery swaps and charging

  Scanning drains a battery. Hot swap keeps the tablet running while the battery is changed, but every pick here is changed and charged outside the hazardous area, so plan spare batteries or a charging point at the area’s edge.

• Windows or Android software

  Check whether your warehouse or ERP software needs Windows (the ecom Pad-Ex 01 P12 DZ2 and the BARTEC Agile S NI run it on x86) or has an Android client (the BARTEC ET60/65EX2, ecom Tab-Ex 05 DZ1 and Getac ZX80-EX).