Can you buy an ISBN from anyone besides Bowker?

Yes — but only from an authorized channel partner of the U.S. ISBN Agency. The U.S. ISBN Agency (Bowker) permits certain authorized channel partners, such as ISBN US (Publisher Services) and Amazon, to purchase and redistribute ISBN numbers. An ISBN obtained through an authorized channel is identical in legitimacy to one purchased directly from Bowker: your book data is communicated to the official bibliographic database (Bowker’s Books in Print), and you are correctly identified as the publisher of record. Everything else — the “cheap ISBN” sites, the discount resellers — is unauthorized, and buying from them can permanently damage your book’s identity in the industry databases.

What is an authorized ISBN Agency channel partner?

A channel partner is a company the U.S. ISBN Agency has approved to assign ISBNs on its behalf. ISBN US (Publisher Services), a division of Bar Code Graphics, Inc., has been an authorized channel partner of the U.S. ISBN Agency since 2004 and is its largest authorized agent for ISBN assignments. Because of this relationship, ISBNs and barcodes for our Publisher Package are delivered instantly from the ISBN Agency, and every client registers their title information and cover art through our online portal, which uploads directly to the Global Books in Print database at Bookwire.com.

How to tell an authorized partner from an unauthorized reseller

Before you buy an ISBN from anyone, run this checklist:

• Books in Print registration. An authorized source registers your title, publisher name, and cover art in Bowker’s Global Books in Print database. If a seller cannot explain how your data reaches Books in Print, walk away.
• Your imprint name. With a legitimate publisher-level ISBN, the publisher of record is you (or your company) — not the reseller. Ask whose name will be attached to the ISBN.
• No “money-back guarantee.” Be wary of any company offering 30-day money-back guarantees on ISBN purchases. An ISBN uniquely identifies a title for the life of the book and should NEVER be reassigned to another book once issued. A refund policy implies recycled numbers.
• Compliant barcodes. Print books require an ISBN barcode that complies with industry standards. As the largest provider of barcode symbols to publishers, Bar Code Graphics’ digital barcode files are the industry standard — high-resolution vector .eps, print-ready.
• Honest naming. Watch for misleading company names. There is a company that calls itself “isbnagency.com” — it is not the U.S. ISBN Agency.

Warning signs of unauthorized ISBN resellers

Unauthorized reselling of ISBNs is a violation of the ISBN standard and of industry practice. The companies doing it tend to advertise with phrases like “CHEAP ISBN” and “BANG FOR YOUR BUCK,” offer refund guarantees, and stay vague about registration. Some ebook publishing companies also offer discounted ISBN assignments; aside from lacking direct access to the Global Books in Print database, their barcodes frequently do not comply with ISBN standards.

What happens if you use an illegitimate ISBN?

Think of an ISBN as a driver’s license for your book — it tells retailers everything they need to know at a glance. Buying an ISBN from an illegitimate source is like buying a driver’s license on a street corner: it may look real, but you will not be correctly identified as the publisher of record in Books in Print or in the databases used by Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or wholesalers such as Ingram. Since the ISBN stays with your book for life, that damage is permanent.

Where should self-publishers buy their ISBN?

You have three legitimate routes: buy directly from Bowker at MyIdentifiers.com; use a free platform ISBN (such as Amazon KDP’s, which lists Amazon rather than you in the publisher field); or buy from an authorized channel partner like ISBN US, where the Publisher Package ($129) registers the ISBN under your own imprint name with instant delivery, print-ready barcode files, no renewal fees, and direct registration to Global Books in Print. Since 2004, ISBN US has served more than 97,000 companies, including over 60,000 self-publishers. See our reviews, or read more about Publisher Services.