So i found u don't need to spend 250usd before your first Amazon listing
Someone told a new selle͏r in another thread they need $250 minimum just for barcodes. That's not right and I don't want new people believing it.
The $250 is GS1's entry price for a prefix. GS1 positions itself as the only source for barcodes, but it's not. What you actually need: one UPC or EAN to create your first listing. That's it. I paid $5 for mine. Got it instantly via email. Created my listing. Done.
The FNSKU thing, separate from this, and fre͏e. Amazon generates it after your listing exists. You don't b͏uy it.
The one thing I'd actually say to new sellers: make sure whoever you buy from can document their barcode origins. There are sketchy sites that recycle numbers or sell the same code to multiple people and that causes real problems. A legit provider gives you a Certificate of GTIN Assignment and the prefix shows up in a GS1 lookup