What is an ISRC code and what is it for?

The ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) is the international code that identifies one specific recording. Every track you distribute to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music or any other platform carries its ISRC, and the platforms use it to count plays and assign royalties to the right recording. In practice, it’s your song’s ID number.

What an ISRC identifies

An ISRC identifies a recording (or a music video), not a composition and not a product. The composition (lyrics and music) is identified by a different code, the ISWC, managed by collecting societies; the commercial product (single, EP or album) is identified by a UPC. That’s why one song can have several ISRCs: the original, the remix, the live version, the acoustic version or a remaster are different recordings and each needs its own code. The difference from the product code is explained in ISRC vs UPC.

How to read an ISRC

An ISRC has 12 characters, usually written with hyphens for readability, for example US-A1B-26-00123:

• Country code (2 letters): the country of the registrant that assigned the code, not necessarily the artist’s country.
• Registrant code (3 characters): identifies the entity that assigns the codes (a distributor, a label or a registered artist).
• Year of reference (2 digits): the year the code was assigned.
• Designation code (5 digits): the recording’s number within that registrant and year.

The system is run by the International ISRC Agency, under the IFPI, through national agencies that issue registrant codes.

What the ISRC is used for

• Counting plays and paying royalties: platforms report consumption by ISRC; if two deliveries share the code, they’re recognized as the same recording.
• Continuity when you switch distributors: by reusing the same ISRCs, Spotify, Apple Music and the other services keep the recording linked to your profile. It’s the basis of an orderly distributor switch.
• YouTube Content ID and other identification systems tie their audio references to the ISRC of each recording.
• Charts, reports and collecting societies use the ISRC to identify recordings in rankings, radio reports and neighbouring-rights statements.

How to get an ISRC

There are two routes. The first is to register as a registrant with your national ISRC agency and assign your own codes; useful for labels with their own catalog. The second, the usual one for independent artists, is to let the distributor assign the ISRC for each track when you upload the release. Andina Music assigns ISRCs (and UPCs) at no extra cost to recordings that don’t have one. If your recording already has an ISRC from a previous release, don’t request a new one: reuse it.

Practical rules

• One ISRC per recording, forever. It’s never reassigned to another track and never changed when you switch distributor or label.
• A new version (remix, live, acoustic, radio edit, remaster with audible changes) needs a new ISRC.
• The same recording released as a single and later on an album keeps the same ISRC; what changes is the product’s UPC.
• Keep a record of your codes (title, version, ISRC, UPC, date). You’ll need it for migrations, Content ID claims and paperwork with collecting societies.
• Check the ISRC before you deliver: a one-character error creates a “new” recording in the platforms’ eyes.

Where to find the ISRC of a released track

In your distributor’s dashboard, in royalty reports, in the track details in Spotify for Artists or in the IFPI’s public ISRC search. If you distribute with Andina Music, every track shows its ISRC in the dashboard and in the reports.

Frequently asked questions about the ISRC

Next step

With the codes sorted, the rest of the release depends on complete, consistent metadata. If your music is ready, digital music distribution explains how we work.