Booklog
Booklog, operated by Computerworks of Chicago, Inc. since 1983, provides point-of-sale and inventory management software for independent and college bookstores, serving over 1,000 active stores across five countries via subscription licensing with modular add-ons for textbooks, used books, and eCommerce.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1983
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Booklog does
Booklog, operated by Computerworks of Chicago, Inc. since 1983, is a point-of-sale and inventory management software platform purpose-built for independent and college bookstores. Headquartered in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood, the company serves an installed base of more than 1,000 active bookstores across five countries and claims 2,100+ cumulative customers over its 40-year operating history. The product line is organized around two core editions — Booklog Retail Edition for independent booksellers and Booklog College Edition for campus stores — extended by modular add-ons for remote and pop-up sales, used book buyback, multistore operations, touchscreen checkout, textbook adoptions and rentals, and financial aid processing. The underlying technology is a Windows-based application running on SQL Server 2022, deliberately architected to operate offline and to integrate deeply with the book industry's supply chain (Ingram, Pubnet, Pubeasy, Bowker, Above The Treeline, Edelweiss+, Bookscan/ABA Bestsellers) and with campus systems (Atrium, Transact, CBORD, TouchNet OneCard, Banner/Colleague with FALink).
The company generates revenue primarily through recurring software licensing and annual maintenance subscriptions, with paid hourly technical support and training services for non-maintenance customers (online group sessions, individual online training, and fee-based onsite training). Go-to-market is sales-led: direct outreach via the website's demo request form, inside sales through the 800 sales line, and field sales for larger accounts, particularly targeting independent booksellers being displaced by the discontinuation of QuickBooks POS. Customer segments are organized vertically, with independent bookstores as the primary segment since founding, supplemented by college/university bookstores, pop-up/mobile retailers, used book and comic stores, and religious bookstores. Marketing channels include the company website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube training content, email/SMS messaging, and a targeted QuickBooks POS migration campaign.
Booklog firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Booklog
- Legal name
- Computerworks of Chicago, Inc.
- Website
- https://booklog.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1983
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Booklog, operated by Computerworks of Chicago, Inc. since 1983, provides point-of-sale and inventory management software for independent and college bookstores, serving over 1,000 active stores across five countries via subscription licensing with modular add-ons for textbooks, used books, and eCommerce.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Booklog industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Bookstore Point-of-Sale and Inventory Software
- NAICS
- Book Retailers and News Dealers (4592), Book Retailers and News Dealers (459210), Book Retailers and News Dealers (45921)
- SIC
- Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General Bookstores (New Books) (CRALAAAA)
Keywords
Where Booklog is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Booklog business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- POS and Inventory Software Licensing: Booklog generates revenue through licensing its point-of-sale and inventory management software to independent bookstores, college bookstores, and other booksellers. The software is sold as a modular system with optional add-ons for eCommerce, remote sales, multistore management, and specialized features like used book management.
- Technical Support Services: Stores with active maintenance agreements receive free upgrades, free training sessions, and unlimited technical support. Stores without active maintenance agreements receive support and training for an hourly fee.
- Training Services: Booklog offers paid training solutions including periodically scheduled online training sessions, individual online training by appointment, and onsite training at customer locations for travel expenses and daily fee.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Maintenance Agreement (Annual Subscription) |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Pay-per-use Support |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Booklog product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Booklog provides point-of-sale and inventory control software purpose-built for independent bookstores, college bookstores, and used book/comic sellers. Its offerings span a Retail Edition and a College Edition of the core POS platform, supplemented by modular add-ons (used books, multistore, remote/pop-up sales, touchscreen checkout, adoptions, rentals, financial aid) and partner integrations such as Timber eCommerce for online sales.
Product overview
Booklog is a unified point-of-sale and inventory management platform specifically designed for independent bookstores. The system comprises a core platform (Booklog Retail Edition) with specialized editions for college bookstores (Booklog College Edition), alongside modular add-ons including Remote Sales, Bookfair to Square Sales, Used Books, Touchscreen Interface, and Multistore capabilities. The platform integrates with Timber eCommerce (Herkimer Media) for web sales, offers textbook management with adoption tracking and rental modules for campus stores, and connects to industry resources like Ingram, Edelweiss, Pubnet, and various financial aid systems. Booklog has been operating since 1983 and powers over 1,000 bookstores across five countries.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Booklog Retail Edition Full-featured point-of-sale and inventory management system for independent bookstores, covering customer loyalty programs, purchasing and receiving histories, detailed reporting, special orders, gift cards, and promotion management. Designed for SMB and mid-market bookstore operators selling new and used books, comics, gifts, and related merchandise.
- Booklog College Edition Retail POS for campus bookstores with additional textbook management capabilities, including adoption tracking, course material management, rental books, eBook support, and Inclusive/Equitable Access programs. Designed for college and university bookstore operators handling financial aid and multi-section course materials.
- Booklog Remote Sales Module Mobile sales add-on that allows offsite workstations and users to transact with full database connectivity while keeping the in-store database active, and supports gift cards and frequent buyer programs from remote locations. Built for pop-up shops, book fairs, and offsite events.
- Booklog Bookfair to Square Sales Integration module that creates book fairs, exports inventory to Square, processes sales through Square hardware at offsite events, and imports sales back into Booklog for unified reporting and re-ordering.
- Booklog Used Books Module Add-on module providing customized customer buyback management for used books, comics, and collectibles, with full control over used item inventory, costs, and sales.
- Booklog Multistore Multi-location management add-on allowing stores to share titles, customers, gift card programs, and promotions while maintaining individual inventory numbers, with support for a consolidated database acting as a warehouse or central repository.
- Booklog Adoptions and Text Management Textbook adoption and course material management module featuring auto-generated purchase orders, online adoption gathering, course/section/title history, shelf tag configuration, and buyback with non-cash payout options for campus bookstores.
- Booklog Rental Module Rental books management add-on with late fee processing for campus bookstores.
- Timber eCommerce (Herkimer Media) Partner-hosted eCommerce platform integrated with Booklog that enables bookstores to sell books and merchandise online, with automatic inventory sync every two minutes, free web hosting, and an included SSL certificate.
- Timber Adopt Partner-hosted online adoption gathering platform for course materials, integrated with Booklog College Edition for campus textbook adoptions.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 2,100 bookstores have trusted Booklog's system
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Booklog
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Booklog technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration25 records
Feature12 records
Booklog partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered founding and core.
- Women and Children First BookstorefoundingFounding partner in 1983 when Booklog was created in partnership with this bookstore in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood. This partnership provided the foundational business requirements and customer feedback that shaped Booklog's development.
- Herkimer Media (Timber)coreTimber e-commerce integration allows bookstores to sell books and merchandise online with sales automatically syncing to Booklog. Web inventory updates every two minutes, with free website hosting and SSL certificate included.
- SquarecoreSquare sales integration through Bookfair to Square Sales module. Sales can be processed through Square hardware at events, then imported back into Booklog for reporting and inventory management.
- Ingram Content Group (Ingram and iPage)coreDeep integration with Ingram for book sourcing, inventory importing via Content@Ingram, warehouse stock checks, and Direct To Home ordering.
- Edelweiss+ (formerly Edelweiss360)coreEdelweiss+ imports for book discovery and inventory management integration.
- Pubnet and PubeasycoreIndustry-standard ordering integration for book inventory and supply chain management.
- American Booksellers Association (ABA) / IndieCommercecoreBookscan/ABA Bestsellers export for sales tracking and IndieCommerce site integration for bookstores with ABA web presence.
- Mercury/VantivcorePCI-compliant credit card processing gateway providing secure payment processing for Booklog POS systems.
- Verifone PointcorePCI-compliant credit card processing gateway as one of three payment processing options for Booklog.
- AtriumcoreFinancial aid system integration for college bookstores to process campus financial aid for textbook purchases.
- TransactcoreFinancial aid system integration for campus payment processing and transaction management.
- CBORD (Odyssey/CSGold)coreCampus card system integration for financial aid processing and student payment solutions.
- Banner / Colleague with FALinkcoreIntegration with Ellucian Banner and Colleague student information systems with FALink financial aid connection.
- TouchNet OneCardcoreCampus card and OneCard system integration for flexible payment options at college bookstores.
- Timber AdoptcoreOnline course adoption gathering through Timber Adopt platform for college textbook management.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Booklog competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Square (Block): Square for Retail is a broad-incumbent POS used by many small retailers including independent bookstores. While not specialized for books, its low-friction pricing, hardware ecosystem, and ease of onboarding make it a frequent competitive alternative for Booklog's SMB bookstore prospects.
- Shopify: Shopify POS is a broad retail and commerce platform increasingly used by independent retailers. Booklog integrates with Shopify-adjacent tooling and competes for bookstore wallet share via Shopify's modern eCommerce/retail unified offering.
- NCR Voyix (NCR Counterpoint): NCR Counterpoint is a retail POS and inventory management system used by specialty retailers. It competes with Booklog for mid-market independent retailers with deeper inventory capabilities but less bookstore-specific workflow specialization.
Emerging players
- Clover (Fiserv): Clover is a POS and merchant services platform from Fiserv used by many small retailers including bookstores. Booklog is compatible with Clover hardware, but Clover also functions as a competitive POS alternative for smaller bookstore accounts with simpler needs.
Direct peers
- Lightspeed Commerce: Lightspeed Retail is a cloud-based POS and commerce platform serving independent retailers including bookstores. It competes directly with Booklog for independent and specialty bookstore customers with a modern SaaS architecture and broader omnichannel features.
- IndieCommerce (American Booksellers Association): IndieCommerce is the American Booksellers Association's eCommerce platform for independent bookstores. While Booklog integrates with IndieCommerce for online sales, it also competes for the same bookstore customers on broader store-operations technology.
- Timber (Herkimer Media): Timber by Herkimer Media is a bookstore eCommerce platform that Booklog integrates with via its Timber eCommerce module. It is also a partial competitor in the bookstore online sales channel where it can stand alone for purely eCommerce-focused accounts.
- Heartland Retail (Global Payments): Heartland Retail is a cloud-based retail POS and inventory management platform targeting specialty retailers. It competes with Booklog for multi-store independent retailers with stronger multi-location inventory and customer management features.
- AmberPOS (Retail Realm): AmberPOS is a retail POS system purpose-built for specialty retailers including bookstores. It is one of the closest direct competitors to Booklog in the independent bookstore POS segment, offering similar inventory and industry integration features.
- MBS Systems (MBS Textbook Exchange / POS): MBS provides textbook distribution and POS/inventory solutions for college bookstores. It competes directly with Booklog College Edition for campus bookstore customers, particularly in textbook management and buyback workflows.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Booklog social profiles
Digital presenceBooklog compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Booklog financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Booklog leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Booklog funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Booklog M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Booklog
What does Booklog do?
Booklog provides point-of-sale and inventory control software purpose-built for independent bookstores, college bookstores, and used book/comic sellers. Its offerings span a Retail Edition and a College Edition of the core POS platform, supplemented by modular add-ons (used books, multistore, remote/pop-up sales, touchscreen checkout, adoptions, rentals, financial aid) and partner integrations such as Timber eCommerce for online sales.
Is Booklog a public or private company?
Booklog is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Booklog founded?
Booklog was founded in 1983. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Booklog based?
Booklog is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Booklog make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. POS and Inventory Software Licensing is the primary driver. The others are technical Support Services and training Services.
Who are Booklog's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Square (Block), Shopify and NCR Voyix (NCR Counterpoint). Clover (Fiserv) is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are Lightspeed Commerce, IndieCommerce (American Booksellers Association), Timber (Herkimer Media), Heartland Retail (Global Payments), AmberPOS (Retail Realm) and MBS Systems (MBS Textbook Exchange / POS).
Does Booklog have an API?
No public API is recorded for Booklog.
What industry is Booklog in?
Booklog's product category is Bookstore Point-of-Sale and Inventory Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALAAAA, General Bookstores (New Books). Its NAICS code is 4592 and its SIC code is 5961.