What are BISAC codes?

BISAC (Book Industry Subject and Category) codes describe your book’s subject/genre. They’re an industry standard used by publishers, retailers, and libraries to categorize books.

Here are some tips for choosing your BISAC codes:

• Be specific. Avoid general BISAC codes whenever possible. “ART / History / Medieval” is significantly better than “ART / History” or “ART / General.”
  
  
• Diversify topic. Try to categorize your book under several subjects. For example, both “TRAVEL / Asia / Southeast” and “SELF-HELP / Personal Growth / Happiness” describe the book Eat, Pray, Love.
  
  
• Accurately describe your book. Readers may be disappointed if your BISAC codes don’t match your book’s subject as a whole.
  
  
• Address audience. Choose “JUVENILE” BISAC codes for children’s books and “YOUNG ADULT” BISAC codes for YA.

You can view the complete BISAC code list here.