On-Sale Dates

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How we verify

A date is published only with its tier, its sources, and the time it was last checked. Here is the process.

Verification gates

  1. Every title is checked against at least five kinds of source: the publisher's catalog, three or more retailers, an ISBN database, the author's own site and social posts, and reader sites at low trust.
  2. A placeholder filter stops fake dates: 31 December or 1 January, Untitled or TBA, no ISBN, no cover, or more than 18 months away. These entries show as Placeholder.
  3. Two independent sources that agree earn Listed. A publisher or author statement earns Confirmed. When sources disagree, the page says so instead of choosing.
  4. A companion, novella, graphic novel, or special edition is never mixed up with the next numbered book.
  5. Every future date is re-checked nightly. A change is logged, shown on the page, and sent to subscribers.
  6. On the day, a retailer showing the book in stock marks it Released. If not, the page is flagged for a look.
  7. A public corrections log and an error-report form keep the record open. A set of known dates is re-checked weekly, so a broken source is caught first.

The tiers

Eight tiers, each defined below. Every tier uses a color, a mark and a word, so it reads on every screen and for every reader.

  • ConfirmedThe publisher or author stated the date, and at least two retailers agree.
  • ListedTwo or more independent sources agree. No publisher or author statement yet.
  • PendingThe edition has been checked. One source states the date, where two are needed for the Listed tier.
  • AnnouncedThe author or publisher has named a window, such as spring 2027, but not a day.
  • PlaceholderA retailer holds a slot with a dummy date, usually 31 December, or an Untitled entry. Shown as a placeholder, never as a date.
  • No dateNothing announced. The reader gets a predicted window and a one-tap alert, not a guess.
  • ReleasedThe book is out. On or after the release day, a source still states that date.
  • DelayedThe release day moved to a later day than the site published. The change log records the move.

From 14 days before the on-sale day through the on-sale day itself, a Confirmed or Listed date moves only on a publisher or author statement, or when two independent retailers give the same new day. If one store changes its listing, the date on record stands. That store's day is named under the answer on the series page and the author page for the book being answered about.