Check the book's library catalog records
Search WorldCat by title and every ISBN
Search WorldCat, the shared catalog of library holdings, by title and by each ISBN (International Standard Book Number) to see which editions libraries have cataloged and how many hold them.
Authors often hire help with this: library or cataloging.
Why it matters
Library catalogs are where librarians look before they buy, and WorldCat is the shared layer beneath many of them. A book that is absent, split across duplicate records, or cataloged under the wrong name is harder for libraries to find and order. Searching is free and takes minutes, and it is the only way to know what libraries see.
Your part
- What you do
- Do it. You normally do this yourself.
- Who normally owns it
- Author. Author searches; libraries and OCLC control the records
- When
- At publication and quarterly through the first year, then as needed (Check the book's library catalog records: after publication, then whenever a new format appears)Checked September 14, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Your part changes with your publishing route.
How to do it
The full walkthrough
WorldCat is the cooperative catalog run by OCLC (Online Computer Library Center), built from the records that thousands of member libraries contribute. When a library catalogs your book, its record and its holding appear there. WorldCat is therefore the closest thing to a public answer to the question 'which libraries have my book?', and it is the first place to look for cataloging problems.
Search three ways: by title, by author, and by each ISBN (International Standard Book Number) separately. Title searches show you every edition and every variant record; ISBN searches show you whether each specific format has its own record. For each result, note the OCLC number (the record's identifier), the edition it describes, and the number of libraries holding it. Compare what you find to your Book Identity Sheet.
What you cannot do is add the book yourself. Records enter WorldCat when a member library catalogs the book or when a vendor supplies a record; there is no author submission. If a book is absent, the fix is a library that holds it and catalogs it. If a record is wrong, the fix is a request to a holding library or, in some cases, through OCLC's own guidance for authors, which explains what can and cannot be corrected and by whom.
This item applies on every publishing path, but it matters most when libraries are a goal. Search at publication and then quarterly, because records accumulate over the first year.
Common mistakes
- Searching by title only and missing a record filed under a variant author name.
- Expecting the book to appear at publication; it appears when a library catalogs it.
- Trying to submit the book to WorldCat directly.
- Confusing the number of records with the number of libraries holding the book.
- Not recording the OCLC numbers, then having to search again.
Identifiers for Search WorldCat by title and every ISBN
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
- WorldCat searched by title, by author, and by each ISBN, at publication and quarterly.
- Each edition found with its OCLC number and holdings count recorded.
- Author name and edition details in the records checked against the Book Identity Sheet.
- Absent editions and wrong records noted, with a plan to raise them through a holding library.
- No expectation that you can add or edit records yourself.
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)
- Other sources
- 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.