Book Not Found

When you scan or search for a book and it’s not found in our database, here’s what you can do.

Why Books Aren’t Found

New, self-published, older, or regional editions may not be in our databases yet. Scanning can fail if you hit a UPC or store barcode instead of the ISBN, the barcode is damaged, or — on the web — the book only has an older barcode format the browser scanner can’t read (the iOS and Android app handles many of those).

Finding the Right ISBN

The ISBN uniquely identifies a book edition. To find the correct one:

1. Check the back cover — look for a 13-digit number starting with 978 or 979 (usually near the price)
2. Check inside — the copyright page often lists the ISBN
3. Look for “ISBN” — the number should be labeled

If you see both a 10-digit and 13-digit ISBN, either works when you type it into search. Prefer the 13-digit one for scanning.

Try a Different Search

All searching happens on the Add Books page — open it from the + icon at the top of the app or Add Books in the side menu. Use the search field at the top (placeholder: “Search by title, author, or ISBN…”).

By title or author:

1. Type the title as it appears on the book, or the author’s name
2. Try variations — with/without the subtitle or series name
3. An author’s last name alone is often enough (e.g. “Lewis” for C.S. Lewis)

By ISBN:

1. Type or paste the full 10- or 13-digit ISBN into the search field — hyphens are fine; a valid ISBN is detected automatically and processed like a scan
2. Watch Recently Added below for the result
3. If an exact ISBN lookup fails, try searching by title or author instead

For scanning tips, see Scanner not working.

If the Book Still Isn’t Found

Check Online

Verify the ISBN and title on a source like Amazon, or WorldCat, then try entering the exact ISBN in the Add Books search field.

Scanning the Wrong Barcode

Books often have more than one barcode on the back cover:

Barcode	What it looks like	Use
ISBN	13 digits starting with 978 or 979; may say “ISBN” nearby	✅ Scan this one
UPC	12-digit product code, often next to the ISBN	❌ Won’t work
Price add-on	Smaller supplemental barcode (often 5 digits)	❌ Won’t work
Store sticker	Inside cover or on a sticker	❌ Won’t work

On iOS and Android, some older books encode a 10-digit ISBN in a Code 39 or Code 128 barcode — the app can read those too. The web scanner looks for the standard 978/979 ISBN barcode only.

Related Articles

• Searching for books
• Adding books to your collection

Still Need Help?

If you can’t find a specific book, contact support with the book details.