How many ISBNs do you actually need? (And when the free one is fine)

1. R

   R. S. Breed Founder

   1 month ago

   The short version:

   1. Kindle ebook only? No ISBN needed. Amazon gives it an ASIN.
   2. Paperback only on Amazon, and happy with "Independently published" as the imprint? KDP's free ISBN is fine.
   3. Want bookshops and libraries, or your own imprint name? Buy your own from your country's ISBN agency (free in Canada and New Zealand).
   4. Paperback and hardcover? That's two ISBNs. One per format.

   The catch with free ISBNs is where they work. KDP's only works on KDP. IngramSpark's free one is for US self-publishers, only works on IngramSpark, and shows Ingram's imprint, not yours. If you want the same paperback on both KDP and IngramSpark, you need to own the ISBN.

   The ISBN planner works it out for your books: https://bervet.com/tools/isbn-planner

   Tick the formats you're publishing, say where each will be sold and where you live, and you get a plan: which formats need a number, where a free one is fine, and what a block costs from your country's agency. It also flags the traps, like buying a cheap single ISBN from a reseller who stays the registered publisher.

   The full background is in the ISBN guide: https://bervet.com/guides/isbns. No account needed.