Do you need to purchase an ISBN?

I’ve had a couple of clients ask this question lately so I thought I’d share my thoughts more widely.

Short Answer: No

The short answer is, no, you don’t have to purchase an ISBN for your book. Although there is some nuance to this. However, most self-published authors tend to choose to have one for several reasons:

1. It is a good way to protect and prove that you own the copyright on your book. Strictly speaking, copyright and ISBNs are entirely separate entities, but if you have purchased or claimed an ISBN for your book, this adds a layer of proof that the book belongs to you.
2. It offers a subtle clue to your readers that your book has been professionally published.
3. It will distinguish your book from others that may have the same title.

What is an ISBN?

Currently, ISBNs are 13-digit numbers that identify a book. ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number.

Prior to 2007, ISBNs were 10-digits long but with the increase in the number of books published they grew to 13-digits.

Every print book must have an ISBN, but digital books do not need one.

“But wait!” you ask. “Just a minute ago you said my book didn’t need an ISBN. What gives?”

What I mentioned was that you don’t need to purchase an ISBN for your print book. Amazon and Draft2Digital, for example, will assign an ISBN to your print book if you wish. When you upload your book’s print file (PDF) to Amazon they will give you the option to use one of their ISBNs for the book.

Keep in mind that there is some anecdotal evidence that libraries and bookstores will not purchase a book with an ISBN assigned by Amazon. So if you would like your book to be available to libraries and book stores, use Ingram-Spark as your distributor.

How do I get an ISBN?

In Canada, we are very fortunate that ISBNs are free and are managed at our National Library.

In the US and Australia, the place to purchase an ISBN is Bowker.

In the UK, ISBNs can be sourced from Nielsen.

Can I use an ISBN for more than one book?

No. You need a unique ISBN for each format of a book. So if you have a print version of your book and an ebook version, you potentially need 2 ISBNs, one for each format. If you also have an audiobook version of the book, you’ll need a third ISBN.

Also, you can ‘recycle’ ISBNs. If you have a book you’ve unpublished, you can reuse the ISBN you got for that book on another title.

Final Words

As with every aspect of publishing a book independently, there are many ways to approach the issue of ISBNs. My recommendation is to obtain your own ISBNs for your book to present the most professional image for your book and to ensure that your book will be accepted and distributed everywhere.