Import your library: switch from Libib, Koha, or a spreadsheet

Already running a library somewhere else? You don’t have to re-type it. BeeShelf imports an existing catalogue (from a CSV or a MARC file) and your members (from a class-roster CSV), dedupes as it goes, and enriches every ISBN with covers and subjects, so a migrated shelf looks complete from day one.

First, check your plan

Imports are checked against your plan’s limits before they run. If the file would take you past your book or member cap, the import stops and shows an upgrade note, for example “The Free plan includes up to 50 books (you have 0). Upgrade in Settings → Billing to add more.” Free includes 50 books and 3 members, Starter 200 and 30, Schools 2,000 and 1,000, and Bibliotheca is unlimited. The check counts every row in the file before deduping, so upgrade in Settings → Billing before a large migration.

Import your catalogue

Open Catalog → Add books → Import catalogue. BeeShelf accepts two kinds of file:

• CSV is a spreadsheet export from Libib, another system, or your own list. Upload it, map the columns (BeeShelf auto-detects title, ISBN, author, publisher, year, barcode, copies, and shelf or call number), preview, and import. Rows with an ISBN are matched against the shared catalogue so covers, summaries, and subjects fill in automatically.
• MARC is a .mrc binary file or MARCXML. If you’re coming from Koha, BeeShelf reads the 952 item fields, so each holding becomes a copy with its own barcode.

Imports dedupe on barcode: a row whose barcode is already on your shelf is skipped, so re-running the same export won’t double those copies. Rows without a barcode can’t be matched, so re-importing a barcode-less file adds the copies a second time. If your export has no barcode column, fix the mapping before you import rather than re-running.

Import your members

Open Members → Import members and upload a class-roster CSV. BeeShelf auto-detects the columns and matches member categories by name (creating any that don’t exist yet). It dedupes on email or library card, so a re-import is safe for any row that carries one. A row with neither can’t be matched and will be added again.

Imported members arrive active but without a password, so you can lend to them at the desk straight away. To place their own holds or use self-checkout, a member with an email address must confirm it first; BeeShelf emails them the link the first time they sign in.

From Google Classroom

Schools on Google Workspace can skip the CSV entirely. Where the platform has it switched on, Members → Import members also offers Connect Google Classroom: authorize with the school’s Google account (read-only, we never change anything in Classroom), tick the classes to bring in, and each roster arrives the same way a CSV would. Each class name becomes a member category, students already on file are skipped, and re-importing after enrolment changes is safe. A teacher sees their own classes; a Workspace admin sees the whole school’s.

After the import

Once your books are in, they’re immediately searchable, lendable, and part of the discovery map. Because covers and subjects were enriched during import, the catalogue looks finished, not like a spreadsheet. Your data is always yours: you can export everything at any time from Settings → Your data.

If you have an unusual export or a large collection, get in touch and we’re happy to help you map it.