Book file guidelines

Important:

  • Google Play partners can sell ebooks and audiobooks in certain countries/regions. The features described here aren't available in every country/region.
  • Pre-orders allow customers to order, but not read, your book before its release date. On the release date, customers who pre-ordered your book are charged for the purchase and they gain access to the book.
  • Due to regulatory requirements, Google can't offer pre-orders in India. Your book will be available in the Google Play Store in India on the on-sale date.
  • Before you upload any files, make sure your content meets Google's guidelines. If you plan to sell your books on Google Play, review our publisher content policies for books on Google Play.
  • Sales reports by month won’t necessarily provide detail that matches your monthly payments. For a financial report that matches your payment, go to Google Play earnings reports.

Audiobook file formats

Google accepts the following audiobook file formats:

  • Audio files: .mp3, .aac, .flac, .wav, .zip, and .lpf.
  • Cover files: .jpg and .png.
  • Supplemental PDF: .pdf.
  • We also accept zip files that contain only the file formats listed above.

Size & quality limits

  • The audiobook must be at least 5 minutes long.
  • M4A with AAC encoding (CBR preferred), >128Kbps (mono) or >=256Kbps (stereo).
  • MP3 (CBR preferred), >=128Kbps (mono) or >=256Kbps (stereo).
  • FLAC, 16 bits/sample, >=44.1 KHz sampling rate.
  • WAV PCM encoded, 16 bits/sample, >=44.1 KHz sampling rate.

Cover image requirements

  • Accepted File Types: .png, .jpg.
  • Resolution: Minimum 72 dpi.
  • Pixel height & width: Minimum 1,024 pixels; maximum 7,200 pixels.
  • Proportions: Square cover images are recommended.

Supplemental material

Google will accept supplemental material that is meant to accompany the audio content as long as the supplemental material meets the requirements below:

  • Must be a PDF file
  • Non-PDF supplements aren’t supported
  • One PDF file for each audiobook. Multi-file PDFs aren’t supported
  • Under 100 MB in size

Audiobook filenames for bulk uploads

Audiobook file naming is only important when you upload audiobooks in bulk.

Submission

How to name the files

Example

Single audio file for an entire audiobook

ID_1of1.mp3 (Recommended)
ID.mp3 (24-hour processing delay)

9783000422560_1of1.mp3
9783000422560.mp3

Multiple audio files for a single audiobook

ID_XofY.mp3 (Recommended)
A single ZIP file that contains all audio files. The ZIP is named as ID.zip, and all audio files in the ZIP are in alphabetical order.

Any other naming convention will result in a 24-hour processing delay while we wait to collect all your files.

9783000422560_1of2.mp3
9783000422560_2of2.mp3


9783000422560.zip
disk_a.mp3
disk_b.mp3
Cover files

<ISBN>.jpg, <ISBN>_frontcover.jpg

Front covers, back covers, and interiors can be sent separately as JPEG or PNG files. TIFF files aren't supported.

9783000422560.jpg

9783000422560_frontcover.jpg


 

Supplemental PDFs


 

<ISBN>.pdf

Supplemental material (.pdf only) can be provided separately or zipped together with audiobook content.

9783000422560.pdf

Ebook file formats

Google accepts the following file formats:

  • Ebook content files: .epub, .pdf.
  • Cover files: .jpeg, .png, .tiff, .pdf.
  • We also accept zip files that contain only the file formats listed above.

We do not accept .doc, .html, or any other file formats.

To sell your book on Google Play, you must provide your book content in either .epub or .pdf format. We recommend that you provide both file formats to give your readers more reading options.

Tip: Even if the cover image is embedded within the .epub or .pdf file, you can submit the cover image as a separate file. We use this file to display a thumbnail of the book cover.

Size & quality limits

  • The book should be at least 4 pages long.
  • Each file must be less than 2 GB. This limit includes cover image files.
  • Cover files must have a minimum resolution of 640 pixels. The maximum height and width are 7,200 pixels.

Cover image requirements

Cover files should be in .jpeg, .pdf, .tiff, or .png format and have the appropriate filename extension.

Format-specific guidelines

.pdf
  • The .pdf file must consist of the complete book or be one of a set of specially named multi-part files
  • Do not upload sample content such as an excerpt. You can control the number of pages a user can preview in your Google Search preview settings.
  • The .pdf file can’t be password-protected. Password-protected files can’t be processed.
  • To automatically generate a table of contents, include bookmarks in the .pdf file.
.epub
  • The .epub file must contain the front cover image.
  • The .epub file must include the complete book. 
  • Do not upload sample content such as an excerpt. You can control the number of pages a user can preview in Book info and then Settings.
  • The .epub file must be validated by EpubCheck.

Ebook filenames

Check the table below for example filenames, based on how you plan to submit your files.

Which identifier to use

  • If you upload a single book in the book's Content tab: You don't need to include the identifier in the filename.The filename extension is used to determine what kind of file you've uploaded.
  • If your books already have unique identifiers such as an ISBN or a Google-assigned GGKEY: Use the filename conventions above, but replace ISBN with the book's actual identifier. The identifier is required for us to associate the file with the correct book. 
    • For GGKEY identifiers, you don't have to include the GGKEY: prefix.
    • For print and electronic ISBNs:
      • Name your .pdf files using the print ISBN. 
      • Name the .epub files using the electronic ISBN. Learn more about ISBNs.
  • If your books don't have unique identifiers: You can use your own filenames. Use the filename conventions above, but replace ISBN with the text of your choice. Follow these guidelines when you create filenames:
    • Don’t use 10-digit or 13-digit numbers as these can be confused with ISBNs. 
    • Don’t use underscores(_) except as noted in the example filenames. For example: _interior or _frontcover.
Important: Incomplete sets of files can’t be processed. Learn more about files and uploading.
A single .pdf file that includes the cover
  • Content and cover
    • ISBN.pdf
A .pdf file that doesn't contain covers. Cover images provided in separate files
  • Required:
    • Content, no cover 
      • ISBN_interior.pdf
    • Front cover 
      • ISBN_frontcover.jpg
      • File extensions differ. .tiff, .pdf, and .png are allowed.
  • Optional:
    • Important: If you submit optional files, submit them first.
    • Back cover
      • ISBN_backcover.jpg
      • File extensions may differ. .tiff, .pdf, and .png are allowed.
A book split into multiple .pdf files
  • Content and cover
    • ISBN_1of3.pdf
    • ISBN_2of3.pdf
    • ISBN_3of3.pdf

Numbering in filenames can vary based on the number of files.

An .epub file
  • Required:
    • Content and cover
    • ISBN.epub
  • Optional:
    • Front cover 
      • ISBN_frontcover.jpg
      • File extensions may differ. .tiff, .png, and .pdf are allowed

Need more help?

Try these next steps:

Want a quicker way to get help?

Chat with a member of the Google Books team.

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