Harmony Publishing vs Blurb
Blurb is a self-publishing and print platform where you make the book yourself, with a long track record in photo books and visually led titles.
Short version. Blurb is a print and self-publishing platform: you build the book in its tools (or upload a PDF), and it prints and sells it. It lists photo books, cookbooks, portfolios and novels among its popular categories, and its Amazon listing is described for photo books. We produce books for authors across genres, including general non-fiction, where the manuscript needs editing, layout, an ISBN and distribution rather than a design tool.
Which should you choose?
Choose Harmony if…
- You want the whole run priced up front: our calculator gives the delivered price of 100 to 10,000 copies (for the common black-and-white paperbacks) before you commit, with the freight as its own line when the shipment is heavy.
- You want one team across editing, design, print and distribution, an ISBN registered in your name or your own imprint, and no share of your royalties.
- Your book is text-led and needs editing, layout and distribution rather than a design tool: with Blurb you make the book yourself in its tools or upload a PDF. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
Choose Blurb if…
- You want to design the book yourself with templates and page layouts, or with Adobe plugins, or upload a PDF. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- Your book is a photo book, cookbook, portfolio or other visual project: Blurb lists these among its book types, and its Amazon listing is for photo books. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- You want to sell from a bookstore of your own on Blurb's site: the Blurb Bookstore is one of its ways to sell, alongside Amazon and Ingram. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
Switching probably isn't worth it if…
- Your book is a design-led project built in BookWright and selling through Blurb: moving means rebuilding it as print-ready files, and the ISBN Blurb issued may not carry over (ask Blurb). (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026; blurb.com/blog/free-isbn-blurb, checked 15 October 2026)
- You are happy designing it yourself and nothing about Blurb is failing you.
Side by side
| Harmony Publishing | Blurb | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A full-service publisher that produces and prints | A self-publishing and print platform where you make the book in Blurb's tools (BookWright, plugins for Adobe programs) or upload a PDF (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Workflow | You send us the manuscript and we produce the book | You build the book yourself in Blurb's tools, or upload a PDF (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Editing | Copyediting and proofreading from Premium; developmental from Rockstar | Not described on Blurb's self-publishing page, which covers tools, distribution and book types (its footer links to 'Hire an Expert') (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Cover and interior design | Included | You design them yourself, with BookWright's templates and page layouts or Adobe plugins (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Book types | Text-led books: novels, memoirs, non-fiction, business | Blurb lists photo books, paperback and hardcover books, magazines, notebooks and journals and wall art, and names cookbooks, memoirs, children's books, portfolios, business books, yearbooks, and novels and poetry as popular categories (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| ISBN | Registered in your name or your imprint | Free with books made in BookWright; each edition (paperback, hardcover, a new edition) has its own ISBN. If a revised book differs by more than 10% from the original, the existing ISBN cannot be moved to the new version (blurb.com/blog/free-isbn-blurb, checked 15 October 2026; blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Distribution | Worldwide distribution set up for you | The Blurb Bookstore; Amazon (listed for photo books, not layflat, Amazon.com only); Ingram for paperback and hardcover books, which Blurb says reaches '40,000+' bookstores and retailers in 195 countries. Additional fees apply to Amazon and Ingram (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Publisher of record and rights | Registered in your name or your own imprint | On its travel-book page Blurb says you own the copyright, the ISBN and the content, that Blurb is the publisher of record for distribution purposes, and that you can update or unpublish your book at any time (blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026) |
| Best for | Authors who want the book produced for them | Author-designers who want control over the design (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026) |
Competitor descriptions reflect their published service structure at the time of writing and may change. Check their current terms directly. Our own prices are on the cost page.
The same book, priced on both
One book, priced the same way on both sides: a 6×9 inch paperback, 200 pages, black and white interior on 60lb natural paper, gloss cover, perfect bound, with print-ready files supplied. Printing only, delivered to ZIP code 10001 (New York, NY), Economy delivery.
| Copies | Harmony Publishing (our calculator, today) | Blurb |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | $890.08 printing, with delivery included$8.90 per copySee it in the calculator | Not published, quote required (blurb.com, checked 15 October 2026) |
| 1,000 | $6,623.74 = $6,140.40 printing + $483.34 freight$6.62 per copy, deliveredSee it in the calculator | Not published, quote required (blurb.com, checked 15 October 2026) |
Our figure is the live output of our calculator at the moment this page was shown. Where the quantity is small, delivery is included in the price; for a heavy shipment the freight is its own line at the carrier's cost, with no markup. Prices exclude sales tax. A competitor price appears here only with a source and the date we checked it; until we have captured one, the cell says so. We never estimate a competitor's price.
The same job on both
The job: Publish a 200-page paperback with your own ISBN and get it on Amazon.
With Harmony Publishing
- Choose a package. Essentials is built for a manuscript that is already edited and covers cover design, interior layout, ISBN assignment, account setup and the publishing submission to KDP and IngramSpark, and distribution worldwide.
- Send your manuscript and a cover brief. If you already own an ISBN for the printed edition you can give it to us in the calculator's ISBN step.
- Approve the proofs. Nothing is printed until you have approved everything.
- We submit the book to the retailers and print-on-demand services and set up distribution in your name.
- You supply:
- A finished, edited manuscript and a cover brief (or a finished cover).
- You get back:
- An ISBN registered in your name or your imprint, your print-ready and editable files, the book live through worldwide distribution, and 100% of your royalties.
- How long:
- 4–6 weeks standard; sometimes up to 8 weeks, depending on the package and how quickly proofs are approved.
With Blurb
- Make the book in BookWright or with Blurb's Adobe plugins, or upload a PDF. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- Get an ISBN: Blurb will issue one free with a book made in BookWright, one for each edition. (blurb.com/blog/free-isbn-blurb, checked 15 October 2026)
- Choose how to sell. For a paperback, Blurb lists Ingram distribution; its Amazon listing is described for photo books (layflat not included), so ask Blurb how a text paperback reaches Amazon. Additional fees apply to both. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- You supply:
- The finished book, built in Blurb's tools or as a PDF. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- You get back:
- Your book printed by Blurb and listed where you choose to sell. Blurb says you own the copyright, the ISBN and the content. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026; blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026)
- How long:
- Blurb's self-publishing page states no time for the whole job. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
Switching to Harmony from Blurb
If you decide to move a book you have already published, this is what carries over, what does not, and an order of steps that keeps the book available the whole time.
What moves with you
- Your content. Blurb says you own the copyright, the ISBN and the content, and can update or unpublish your book at any time. (blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026)
- A PDF of your book, if you built it from one. A book made in BookWright is easiest to move if you export a print-ready PDF. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
What does not
- The ISBN Blurb issued, in practice. Blurb says it is the publisher of record for distribution purposes, and a revised book that differs by more than 10% cannot keep its ISBN, so plan a new ISBN for the new edition and ask Blurb whether the old one can be used elsewhere. (blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026; blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- Retailer listings and reviews tied to the old ISBN. A new ISBN starts as a new listing, and whether reviews can be carried over is the retailer's decision.
The order of steps, so the book is never unavailable
- Keep a print-ready PDF of the interior and the cover, and leave the Blurb listing live while you move.
- Decide the ISBN: keep one you own, or take a new one with us.
- Order a single proof copy from us (the calculator prices one copy) and approve it.
- Publish the new edition with us and check it is live on Amazon and the other stores you sell through.
- Only then unpublish the Blurb book: Blurb says you can do this at any time, but the page does not say how long it takes to leave Amazon and Ingram listings, so ask Blurb support. (blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026)
What to check first
- Is the book made in BookWright? You will need a print-ready PDF of it. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- Which channels is it on (Blurb Bookstore, Amazon, Ingram)? Each listing needs ending, and Blurb's pages do not say how long that takes. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
- Does the book meet the trim and page limits of the new print run? Check them in the calculator.
To price a reprint or a proof copy before you move anything, use the calculator.
Three questions to ask any provider
Including us. The answers decide more about value than the headline price:
- Ask who the publisher of record will be. If it is not you or your imprint, understand why before you sign.
- Ask what royalty share they take. Any percentage of your sales is a cost that compounds over the life of the book.
- Ask whether you receive your editable source files. If you cannot take your interior and cover elsewhere later, you are locked in.
On all three, our answer is: you are the publisher of record, we take no royalties, and you receive your print-ready and editable files.
How this comparison was made
- Prepared by the Harmony Publishing editorial team.
- Blurb's public product, help and terms pages were read on the dates in the sources list; nothing was purchased, and no account was opened.
- Our figures are the live output of our own calculator, for the scenario stated above.
- A competitor price appears only with a source and the date it was checked; until we have captured one, the cell says so. We never estimate a competitor's price.
- Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Each source below carries the date it was checked, which can be earlier.
Sources
- www.blurb.com/self-publish — checked 15 October 2026
- www.blurb.com/blog/free-isbn-blurb/ — checked 15 October 2026
- www.blurb.com/travel-photo-books — checked 15 October 2026
- www.blurb.com/ — checked 15 October 2026
Frequently asked questions
Is Blurb cheaper than Harmony Publishing?
Blurb is a platform where you make the book yourself, so there is no design or editing service to pay for. The comparison only holds if you count your own time and any help you buy elsewhere. For a design-led book you want to build yourself, it can be the more direct route. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
Can a Blurb book be sold on Amazon?
Blurb's self-publishing page lists Amazon for photo books (layflat not included) and Ingram for paperback and hardcover books, with additional fees for both. If your book is a text paperback, ask Blurb how it reaches Amazon. (blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)
Does Blurb provide an ISBN?
Yes: Blurb says it issues ISBNs for free with any book made using BookWright, one for each edition (paperback, hardcover, a new edition). (blurb.com/blog/free-isbn-blurb, checked 15 October 2026)
Can I use both?
Yes. A book produced with us can be printed or sold through Blurb, or produced and printed with us and listed elsewhere. An ISBN belongs to one edition, so the edition you list in two places should carry the same ISBN.
Can I move a book from Blurb to Harmony?
Yes. Export a print-ready PDF, plan a new ISBN (Blurb is the publisher of record for distribution purposes, and a changed book can need a new ISBN), order a proof, publish with us, and only then unpublish the Blurb book. Blurb says you can unpublish at any time but does not say how long its Amazon and Ingram listings take to clear, so ask Blurb support. (blurb.com/travel-photo-books, checked 15 October 2026; blurb.com/self-publish, checked 15 October 2026)