The United Nations Standard Products and Services Code provide an open, global multi-sector standard for efficient, accurate classification of products and services. The United Nations Standard Products and Services Code or more commonly called UNSPSC coding  is a hierarchical convention that can be used to classify any product or service. A UNSPSC code consists of five levels, by which the first four are standardized. Each level is coded by a two digit number, so that the notation 8 - and/or code with 10 digits are. The UNSPSC offers a single global classification system that can be used for: Company-wide visibility of spend analysis, Cost-effective procurement optimization and Full exploitation of electronic commerce capabilities. Applying a standard coding system allows spend analysis across the board, enabling procurement functions to deliver on cost effectiveness demands. It also enables those who use it to make the most of ecommerce capabilities.

Today’s customers demand faster fulfillment at a lower cost. Increasingly business is eBusiness. The need to approach procurement more strategically has never been greater. This means that fast, simple, accurate classification of goods and services is essential in today’s marketplace. The UNSPSC is a single coding convention that all companies can use so that they all speak the same language in order to speed up and rationalize processes. Classifying products and services with a common coding scheme facilitates commerce between buyers and sellers and is becoming mandatory in the new era of electronic commerce. Large companies are beginning to code purchases in order to analyze their spending.