Never buy the same book twice.
Point your phone at the bookshelf and Shelfmark catalogs every book your kid owns, then answers the only question that matters at the store: do we already have this one?
Free while in testing · works in Safari · nothing to install
One photo does the cataloging
Snap the shelf
One photo captures the whole row: board books, worn spines, sideways stacks. Seconds, not an afternoon.
Tap to confirm
Most books add themselves. When two look genuinely alike, Shelfmark asks instead of guessing. One tap settles it.
Share the shelf
Send one link to the people who buy your kid books. They check it from any store aisle. No app, no account.
The boring promises, kept
Photos are not kept
Shelf photos are processed and then deleted. Individual book images are saved only if you opt in.
It never bluffs
A wrong “already owned” means a missed gift. When a match is uncertain, Shelfmark asks you instead of guessing.
Your data is yours
Export your library anytime. Delete your account and everything goes with it.
The shelf is already there.
Point your phone at it.
Start with one shelf. You’ll have a searchable library in minutes, and grandma gets her link tonight.
Scan your first shelfBefore you buy another picture book
Children's books and reading: the statistics worth citing
Sourced figures on reading aloud, home libraries and book ownership. Every number links to the study it came from.
Apps for cataloging children's books, honestly compared
What each of the main options is really built for, where each struggles with picture books, and how to pick.
How to stop buying the same children's book twice
The duplicate problem is a memory problem, not a shopping problem. Here is why the obvious fixes fail and what actually works.
How to catalog your kid's bookshelf: 5 methods, honestly compared
Five ways to get a bookshelf into a searchable list, with the real time cost of each and where each one breaks down.
How to buy books for someone else's kid without buying a duplicate
You want to give a book, not a book they already have. Here is how to check first, without asking a question that spoils the gift.
What order should kids read a book series in?
Dog Man, Junie B. Jones, Magic Tree House and Who Was?, in order, plus how to tell whether a series needs order at all.
A grandparent's book gift guide, by age
Real book recommendations for four age bands, and how to check you're not about to buy a second copy of something.
What to do with books your kids have outgrown
Before the donation box: what's worth keeping, what a younger cousin would want, and why two minutes now saves a guessing game later.
How families can stop buying the same book gift twice
One relative checking the shelf doesn't stop two relatives buying the same book on the same day. Here's the fix for that.