How to organize digital comics
The best way to organize digital comics is to name every file with its series and issue number, like Plastic Man 001.cbz, and keep one folder per series. Then add the files to a reader that groups them for you. In LiveComics, issues of the same series stack themselves in reading order, shelves you name hold everything else, and your place follows you to every screen.
How should I name my comic files?
Series name first, issue number after it, the same way every time: Plastic Man 001.cbz, Plastic Man 002.cbz. Pad the numbers with zeros so issue 10 sorts after issue 9 in a folder. #3 and Vol. 2 work too. A year in brackets keeps two runs of the same title apart, like Plastic Man (1943) 001.cbz, and other tags in brackets are ignored when issues are grouped.
Should I keep one folder per series?
On your own computer, yes. One folder per series, inside one folder per publisher if you like, is the layout most comic apps and servers expect. It also keeps your own copy easy to look after, because the whole collection is one folder you can copy to a drive or a cloud folder.
How do I keep a series in reading order?
Add the issues to LiveComics and they stack themselves. Issues that share a series name become one tile, sorted by issue number, with the next issue's cover on top and a count of how many you have read. Tap the stack to see every issue, or press Continue to open the next one. If an issue lands in the wrong series, use Take out of series or Change series on it.
- Make a free account at livecomics.to, or get the app from the App Store, Google Play or the Microsoft Store.
- In your library, press + Add Comics and pick the files. You can pick many at once, or paste a Google Drive or Dropbox share link instead.
- Choose Pages only, Panel view or Voiced and press Add.
Each file can be up to 2.6 GB. A free account imports 30 comics a month and holds 1 GB, about 20 single issues, with no card. For a bigger collection, Collector is $3 a month for 50 GB and lifts the import limit.
How do I sort comics onto shelves?
Press + New Shelf in your library, give it a name, and drag comics onto it: a shelf per publisher, a reading list, or what the kids are reading. Drag issues to put them in order, with a mouse, a long press on a phone, or the keyboard, while the library is sorted by Manual order. Comics on no shelf wait in Ungrouped, and deleting a shelf never deletes its comics. Your shelves are saved to your account, so they look the same on every device.
Can I keep comics, manga and manhwa apart?
Yes. The library has All, Comics, Manga and Manhwa tabs, and each book's type is detected when you add it. If one is filed under the wrong type, change it on the book.
How do I see what I am in the middle of?
Continue Reading, at the top of your library, holds every book you have started and not finished, newest first, each with how far you got. Search your library finds any title. Your place is saved to the panel and follows you to every phone, tablet and computer you sign in on.
What won't it do?
It isn't a metadata manager. It doesn't read or edit ComicInfo tags or look up issue details online, so series are grouped from the file name, which is why naming matters. To edit tags, use a desktop library manager first, then add the tidy files here. LiveComics keeps the pages of each comic, not the original file, so keep your own copy of the files too.
Straight answers
What is the best way to organize digital comics?
Name every file with the series and a zero padded issue number, keep one folder per series, and add them to a reader that groups series for you. LiveComics stacks each series in reading order, and you can add named shelves on top.
What is the best app to organize digital comics?
For reading, pick one that groups each series and keeps your place on every device: LiveComics does both on iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows and in any browser. For editing ComicInfo tags, use a desktop library manager.
How do I organize CBR and CBZ files?
The same way as any comic file: series name first, a zero padded issue number after it, one folder per series. LiveComics reads CBR, CBZ, PDF and EPUB as they are, so there is nothing to convert first.
Does LiveComics read ComicInfo tags?
No. Series are grouped from each issue's title, which starts as the file name. You can rename a book or change its series in your library.
Can I make a comic reading list?
Yes. Make a shelf, name it after the list, and drag the issues onto it in the order you want to read them. Shelves are saved to your account.
Is it free to organize my comics here?
Yes, to add, organize and read your comics. A free account imports 30 comics a month with 1 GB of storage, about 20 single issues, and no card. Panel view is free on every issue, and voices come with a monthly plan or a top-up.
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