Music Industry
How to Find Your ISRC Code: A Guide for Independent Artists
Your ISRC uniquely identifies your recording across every streaming platform and royalty system. Here is how to find it, register it, and use it correctly.
The ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) is the unique identifier for your specific recording. It follows your music across every platform, every royalty payment, and every licensing agreement. Here is everything you need to know about ISRCs as an independent artist.
1. How ISRCs are assigned
Most distributors (DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby, Amuse) automatically assign ISRCs when you submit music for distribution. If you submitted a track years ago without requesting an ISRC, your distributor may still have it on file — check your distributor dashboard or contact their support. ISRCs can also be self-registered through your country's national ISRC agency if you prefer to assign them yourself.
2. How to look up an ISRC for an existing song
If you lost your ISRC or need to verify the code assigned to a specific recording, use Lynkify's free ISRC Finder tool at lynkify.in/tools/isrc-finder. Enter the Spotify or Apple Music link for the track and the tool returns the ISRC code associated with that specific recording. You can also find ISRCs in the Spotify for Artists catalog view or in your distributor's track management dashboard.
3. Why you need different ISRCs for different versions
Each unique recording gets its own ISRC. A studio version and an acoustic version of the same song are different recordings — each needs a different ISRC. A remix is a different recording — different ISRC. A remaster is a different recording — different ISRC. Reusing an ISRC from an earlier version for a new version causes royalty attribution confusion and metadata errors across platforms.
4. Using your ISRC in smart links and metadata
When creating a Lynkify smart link, you can add your ISRC in the release metadata fields. This helps ensure your smart link page is associated with the correct recording for any third-party sync or licensing tools that use your Lynkify page as a reference. It also makes your smart link more professional in press and licensing contexts.
Frequently asked questions
- Is an ISRC required to distribute music?
- Most major distributors require or strongly recommend an ISRC for every track. Without an ISRC, platforms may assign their own internal identifiers that do not connect to your royalty collection accounts. Having a properly assigned ISRC from the start avoids royalty attribution problems later.
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Written by
Founder
Founder of Lynkify. Builds tools that help independent artists and podcasters own their audience data.