WorldCat Search API
Developer-level Access to WorldCat - for bibliographic holdings and location data
- Status: Production
- Sandbox access: Yes
What you get
- Search WorldCat and retrieve bibliographic records for cataloged items such as books, videos, music and more in WorldCat
- Retrieve records in MARC XML or Dublin Core formats
- Get item information in the standard bibliographic citation formats (APA, Chicago, Harvard, MLA, and Turabian
- Find about libraries that own an item and retrieve links to online catalog records when available.
Who can use it
- Libraries that maintain both WorldCat Discovery and OCLC Cataloging subscriptions. Production access is limited to 50,000 requests per day.
- Partners interested in integrating WorldCat data into their software
- This API has specific Terms and Conditions.
Commercial partnerships are also available.
Authentication & Authorization
The WorldCat Search API supports the WSKey Lite pattern.
Automatic ILL Request Verification
Institution: Minitex
Developer: Paul Swanson
This application uses C# and the WorldCat Search API to automatically find library locations that hold the requested item.
Red Laser
Developer: Occipital.com
RedLaser is an iPhone app that turns your phone into a barcode scanner. It lets you check and compare prices for items such as books, videos and more—and it now includes library materials results.
Cite this
Institution: Miami University
Developer: Rob Casson
This application uses the WorldCat Search API in order to provide users with citations in various formats. Users click on the "Cite" link on a given record and a pop-up window with citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, and Turabian styles are displayed.