ISBN Hyphenator Tools and How to Hyphenate ISBN-13

The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a unique identifier for books, used worldwide. ISBN consists of 13 digit (earlier it was 10 digit), these 13 digits number have 5 parts. Each of the parts is separated by a hyphen. Hyphens in the ISBN are not random. There are ISBN registration groups code in the ISBN that decide where the hyphens should be. It is difficult to put hyphens in ISBN manually. There are several ISBN Hyphenator tools online that can help you put hyphens in ISBN code at the right place.

Understanding ISBN

Before we dive into hyphenation, it’s essential to understand the structure of ISBN-13. It consists of five parts:

1. Prefix: The first three digits (978 or 979) are followed by a hyphen (ISBN-10 doesn’t have an ISBN prefix). Example: 978-
2. Registration group element: Identifies the country, geographical region, or language area of the publisher. This can be 1-5 digits long, depending on the country or region. For instance, English-speaking countries like the US, UK, and Canada have the numbers 0 or 1. So, if the next digit is 0 or 1, that’s your registration group. Example: 978-1
3. Registrant element: Identifies the particular publisher within the registration group. This varies in length, depending on the registration group. You’ll need the ISBN Range database to determine where this element ends. Example: 978-1-56619
4. Publication element: Identifies the specific edition of a publication. This is the part of the ISBN that remains after the prefix, registration group, and registrant elements have been identified. Its length can vary. Example: 978-1-56619-909
5. Check digit: A single digit at the end, ensuring the number’s validity. Example: 978-1-56619-909-4

Why Hyphenate ISBN-13?

Hyphenation serves two primary purposes:

1. Readability: It’s easier to read and transcribe an ISBN when it’s broken down into its constituent parts.
2. Identification: The hyphens help identify the different elements of the ISBN, providing information about the book’s origin, publisher, and specific edition.

Some barcode generator tools and book publishing platforms require you to provide a hyphenated ISBN. In this case, you can take a few steps to get your ISBN number hyphenated correctly.

Steps to Hyphenate ISBN-13

There are few ways to get your ISBN hyphenated, I will cover all the methods.

Contact Your ISBN Provider or Agency: Check your email that you received from ISBN provider after your order or any email that you received. Must ISBN providers send ISBN in hyphenated format. You might have to contact their support if you haven’t received your ISBN in hyphenated formats.

Do it yourself: First and last hyphens in the ISBN are easy. You have to put one hyphen after 3 digit and second hyphens just before the last digit. Example: 978-156619909-4. The next hyphen will be after the first hyphen, this depends on the origin of the ISBN. You can read more about ISBN registration grouping here. You need to identify the registration group and put a hyphen after that.

The third hyphen will determine book publisher. Each year ISBN International Organization updates a database of global book publishers which you can download the dataset here. This dataset will help you find the next digit. This will be the difficult part if you want to do manually. Once you identify the publisher’s code, then the next code “Publication” will be highlighted automatically.

ISBN Hyphenator Tools

Several online tools can automatically hyphenate ISBNs for you. These tools reference the official ISBN Range database to ensure accurate hyphenation. Some popular tools include:

1. ISBN Hyphenator by ISBN Publishing

This ISBN Hyphenator tool is built by us at Bookllo Publishing team. We did lots of testing on existing Hyphenator tools, none of them were perfect, so we built one perfect ISBN Hyphenator tool. This tool works with all kinds of ISBN. ISBN with prefix 978 and 979. The tool supports ISBN from anywhere in the world, also it is based on latest ISBN range data provided by the ISBN International organization.

2. ISBN-Hyphenator By Otzberg.net

Otzberg ISBN hyphenator can hyphenate not just US-based ISBN, but also ISBN from other countries too. It works perfectly based on my experience. The only problem is: It can’t hyphenate ISBN with the prefix 979.

3. ISBN.org Converter

ISBN.org converter works great when it comes to converting ISBN-10 to ISBN-13 and vice versa. When converting ISBN through ISBN.org converter output include hyphenated ISBN. This tool is not designed for ISBN hyphenation, but it does a fantastic job at hyphenating with only one twist. You need to change the last check digit to match the version of ISBN.

For example, if you want to hyphenate ISBN 9781566199094 then the output will be 1-56619-909-3. Please change 1-56619-909-3 to 1-56619-909-4 and add prefix. Final Hyphenated ISBN 978-1-56619-909-4

Also, the ISBN.org converter doesn’t work with ISBN prefix 979 because 979 is the latest ISBN prefix, and it’s not convertible to ISBN-10. You can purchase ISBN Prefix 979 here US based and hyphenated ISBN.

Hyphenating ISBN-13 might seem daunting initially, but with a clear understanding of its structure and the right tools, it becomes a straightforward task. Proper hyphenation ensures that ISBNs are easily readable and provides valuable information about the book’s origin, publisher, and edition.

Read more:

1. ISBN Converter ISBN-10 to ISBN-13 and Vice Versa (Complete Guide)
2. Anatomy of a 13-Digit ISBN: A Comprehensive Guide
3. Anatomy of a 10-Digit ISBN: A Comprehensive Guide
4. ISBN Barcode Generator Tool