ISRC and UPC Codes for Music — What They Are and Why You Need Them
Two acronyms confuse first-time artists more than any other: ISRC and UPC. They sound technical and boring — but if you mess them up, your royalty payments break, your stream counts get split, and your song doesn't link to your artist profile. The good news: a proper distributor handles both automatically. Here's what they are and why they matter.
ISRC — International Standard Recording Code
An ISRC is a unique 12-character ID for a single recording. It looks like: IN-XYZ-25-00001. Think of it as the fingerprint of your song.
Every time your song is streamed, downloaded, or played on radio anywhere in the world, that ISRC is the identifier used to track the play and route the royalty back to you.
Breaking down the format
- IN — Country code (India)
- XYZ — Registrant code (assigned to the distributor or label)
- 25 — Year of registration (2025)
- 00001 — Unique track number
One song = one ISRC. If you remix it, that's a new ISRC. If you re-record it, that's a new ISRC. Cover versions get their own ISRC.
UPC — Universal Product Code
A UPC (also called EAN) is a barcode for a release — meaning the album or single as a whole, not the individual track. It's 12 or 13 digits long.
An EP with 4 songs gets 1 UPC + 4 ISRCs. A single gets 1 UPC + 1 ISRC.
UPCs are used by digital stores and physical retailers to identify the release in their inventory. Spotify uses UPC internally to know which release a song belongs to.
Why royalty tracking depends on these codes
Imagine you release a song and it gets played 100,000 times on Spotify. Spotify sends a payment to your distributor with a list of plays grouped by ISRC. Your distributor matches each ISRC to your account and credits your dashboard.
If two artists release a song with the same ISRC (which happens when an artist generates a fake one or uses a tool incorrectly), Spotify pays whoever's ISRC was registered first — and the second artist gets nothing.
Where do ISRCs come from?
The official issuer in India is the Indian Music Industry (IMI). You can apply directly as a registrant for ₹15,000+ per year, but for one or two releases this is impractical.
The easier route: your distributor assigns an ISRC from their registrant pool for every release, free of cost. Auripy includes ISRC on every plan — Starter (₹199), Pro (₹399), and Yearly Unlimited (₹1,299). You don't pay extra.
Common ISRC mistakes
Mistake 1: Reusing an ISRC
If you remix or remaster your own song, do NOT reuse the original ISRC. That breaks royalty tracking. Always get a new ISRC for any new version.
Mistake 2: Putting ISRC in the wrong field
ISRC goes in the dedicated ISRC field of your distributor's form. Don't paste it into "track title" or "notes". (Auripy auto-fills it for you.)
Mistake 3: Generating fake ISRCs
There are random ISRC generator websites. Do NOT use them. Fake ISRCs cause delivery failures, royalty leaks, and may get your account banned from Spotify.
UPC vs EAN — what's the difference?
UPC is the 12-digit version used historically in the US. EAN is the 13-digit version used globally. For digital distribution they're interchangeable. Spotify, Apple Music and JioSaavn accept both.
Do you need a UPC for a single?
Yes. Even a single release needs a UPC because it's still a "release" in the catalog database. Your distributor assigns one automatically.
What about YouTube Content ID?
YouTube Content ID uses ISRC behind the scenes. When someone uses your song in a Reel or Short, the Content ID system matches the audio fingerprint, looks up the ISRC, and routes ad revenue to whoever owns that ISRC. Auripy registers your ISRC with YouTube Content ID by default — so you get paid when your song goes viral on YouTube and Shorts.
Can you take your ISRCs with you if you switch distributors?
Yes — and you should. The ISRC stays with the recording, regardless of distributor. With Auripy, every ISRC we assign is permanently yours; if you ever move distributors, you carry your ISRCs along and royalty history follows.
UPCs after release
Once your release is live, the UPC is locked in. You can't easily change it. If you re-release with new artwork or a different mastered version, that's usually a new UPC and counts as a new release.
Quick recap
- ISRC: 12-character ID for each individual recording. Tracks streams and royalties.
- UPC: 12–13 digit ID for each release (single, EP, album). Identifies the bundle.
- Both are free when you use Auripy. No need to register separately.
- Never generate fake codes. Let your distributor handle it.
Get ISRCs and UPCs right once, and royalty tracking just works — invisibly, automatically, forever.