Sign up your library
Walkthrough of the signup form — library name, subdomain, admin contact.
Signing up takes about 60 seconds. Here's the walkthrough.
Step 1: Library name
Enter the name of your library as you want patrons to see it — for example, "Maple Street Community Library" or "Westside Reading Room". This appears in the header of your patron-facing site and in every email Shelfwise sends.
You can change this any time from Settings → Appearance.
Step 2: Subdomain
As you type your library name, we auto-suggest a subdomain. You can edit it manually. The rules:
- Lowercase letters, digits, and hyphens only
- 3-32 characters
- Can't start or end with a hyphen
- Can't be one of our reserved names (admin, api, www, etc.)
Your subdomain becomes your library's URL: yourchoice.tryshelfwise.com. You can change it later, but every patron has the old URL bookmarked, so most libraries pick once and keep it.
Step 3: Your name and email
This creates the first admin account for your library. Your email becomes your login. You'll get a magic link to set a password on the first sign-in.
You can invite additional admins, librarians, and members after sign-in.
Step 4: Submit
After clicking "Create my library":
- We create your library record
- We send you an invite email — open it and set your password
- Your library is live at yourchoice.tryshelfwise.com
- Your 7-day free trial starts
You'll land on the first-time setup checklist. From there, customize your branding, add a few books, and you're ready for patrons.