Check the book's library catalog records
Record OCLC numbers for each catalog record
Write down the OCLC (Online Computer Library Center) number of every WorldCat record that describes your book, so you can cite the exact record when asking a library or cataloger about it.
Authors often hire help with this: library or cataloging.
Why it matters
Library conversations run on OCLC numbers the way retail conversations run on ISBNs. An author who can say 'the record with OCLC number such-and-such lists the wrong subtitle' gets a fix; an author who says 'my book is wrong in WorldCat' gets a request for more information. The numbers also let you watch specific records over time.
Your part
- What you do
- Do it. You normally do this yourself.
- Who normally owns it
- Author and Library cataloger. Author records; a cataloger can help locate them
- When
- When records appear in WorldCat, and as new ones are added (Check the book's library catalog records: after publication, then whenever a new format appears)Checked September 14, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
How to do it
The full walkthrough
Every record in WorldCat carries an OCLC number, a unique identifier assigned by OCLC (Online Computer Library Center) that libraries use to refer to that specific record. When you want a cataloger to look at a record, merge two records, or correct a field, the OCLC number is what they ask for. An ISBN identifies your product; an OCLC number identifies a library's description of it, and one product can have several.
The task is to search WorldCat for your book (by title, author, and each ISBN) and note the OCLC number of each record found, alongside the edition and format it describes and the holdings count at the time. Keep them in your Book Identity Sheet next to the ISBNs. When new records appear, add them.
Recording the numbers does not change anything in WorldCat. It gives you the vocabulary to have a useful conversation with a librarian or cataloger, whether that is at your local library, at your publisher, or at a library that holds the book and can request a correction. On any publishing path this is the author's task; publishers rarely track OCLC numbers for authors, and a cataloger may help you find them if you ask.
If you find several records for what should be one edition, note that too; the next item is about split and merged records.
Common mistakes
- Confusing the OCLC number with the ISBN or the Library of Congress Control Number.
- Recording one number when several records exist.
- Assuming the number is something you can change or request.
- Not dating the holdings count, so growth cannot be seen later.
Identifiers for Record OCLC numbers for each catalog record
Set a status on any record and it joins this step. All book identifiers.
| My status | Identifier | Why this matters | Yours |
|---|---|---|---|
| WorldCat The shared library catalog where member libraries report which books they hold, free for anyone to search. | Catalogers reuse records from here, so an error in one record tends to spread, and a missing record, a duplicate, or one record that mixes two formats makes your book harder for a library to order correctly. No author on any route can edit a record. Traditionally and hybrid published authors normally send the correction to the publisher's metadata team or distributor, and a self-published author normally goes to their platform, or to a library that holds the book and can report the problem. Record the OCLC number for each edition, note any error, and remember that public holdings counts are incomplete and delayed. | Add your OCLC number | |
| OCLC information for authors OCLC's short help page explaining how library records for your book are made and who is able to change them. | Reading it before you write to anyone saves you sending a correction to a party who cannot act on it, which is the usual reason nothing happens. It is guidance and not a form: there is no way to add a book to the shared library catalog by asking, and there are no author profiles there. Every route does the same thing here, which is read first; normally a metadata error goes to the publisher's metadata team for a traditionally or hybrid published book and to the platform or distributor for a self-published one, while a duplicate or merged record goes to a holding library or to OCLC. Identify the party that can act, then send a request naming the record number, wrong field, correct value, and supporting source. | Nothing to record |
What done looks like
- Every WorldCat record for the book listed with its OCLC number, the edition and format it describes, and the holdings count and date.
- The list kept next to the ISBNs in the Book Identity Sheet.
- New records added as they appear at each quarterly search.
- Duplicate records for one edition noted for follow-up.
Evidence. Done means someone says the work happened. Verified means you checked the confirmation, link, or public record yourself.
Sources and last checked
- Official source
- Official source (opens in a new tab)
- Last checked
- September 14, 2026
- How confident we are
- Verified
Rules and deadlines change. We last checked this information on September 14, 2026. If you see something that needs updating, please tell us.