ComicInfo.xml explained: comic metadata that keeps your library tidy

What ComicInfo.xml is

ComicInfo.xml is a small XML file stored inside a comic archive, next to the page images, that describes the comic: its series, issue number, title, creators, publisher, date and summary. It originated with ComicRack, a Windows comic manager, and has since become the de facto standard for comic metadata. Self-hosted comic servers such as Komga and Kavita read it, as do many reader apps, including TritonPanels.

It is optional. A comic without one still opens and reads normally. What you lose is organisation: without metadata, software has to guess the series and issue from the filename, and guesses go wrong.

Where it lives

The file goes in the top level of the archive, at the same level as the pages, and must be named exactly ComicInfo.xml. It works the same way in CBZ, CBR, CB7 and CBT archives. Because it lives inside the comic, the metadata travels with the file: copy the comic to another device, upload it to a server or import it into a different reader, and the details come with it.

The fields that matter

The format defines many fields, and almost all are optional. These are the ones you will meet most often and that most software uses:

Two details trip people up. Number is text, so 1, 1.5 and Annual 1 are all allowed; keep it to the bare number where you can, because sorting works best that way. And Manga takes one of a few fixed values — Yes, No, YesAndRightToLeft — where the last one tells software that supports it to read the pages right to left.

A minimal example

This is a complete, valid file. Anything you don’t know, leave out:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<ComicInfo>
  <Series>Fantastic Comics</Series>
  <Number>3</Number>
  <Year>1940</Year>
  <Publisher>Example Press</Publisher>
  <Manga>No</Manga>
</ComicInfo>

Field names are case-sensitive: Series works, series does not. A stray & or < in a value makes the whole file invalid; write them as & and <. Most software, TritonPanels included, simply ignores a broken ComicInfo.xml and carries on with the filename, so a mistake costs you the metadata rather than the comic.

How TritonPanels uses it

When you import a comic, TritonPanels reads its ComicInfo.xml and keeps the series, number, volume, title, creators, publisher, year, genre and summary. Those details drive the library: sorting by Series puts issues in order, search finds comics by title, series, author or publisher across one library or all of them, and the comic’s details page shows the writer, artist, publisher, year and genre. When a series has a next issue, Continue to next comic can take you straight to it.

A Title in ComicInfo.xml becomes the comic’s display title; without one, the filename is used. TritonPanels does not switch reading direction from the Manga field, so for manga choose Right to Left (Manga) in the reader, or apply the built-in Manga preset.

When there is no metadata: filenames

Without ComicInfo.xml, software falls back to the filename, and a consistent pattern makes the guess reliable. The widely used convention is:

Series Name #001 (1940).cbz

TritonPanels reads an issue number written as #001 or Issue 001, a four-digit year in brackets, and takes the series from the text before them. A bare Series Name 001.cbz is ambiguous, because the number could be part of the title, so add the #. Metadata inside the file always wins over the filename when both exist.

Keeping a series consistent

Metadata only helps if it agrees with itself across issues. A few habits keep a series together:

• Spell the series the same way every time. Fantastic Comics and Fantastic Comics (1939) are two different series to most software. Pick one form and keep to it.
• Use Volume to separate runs. When a series restarts its numbering, keep the same Series and change Volume, so the two issue #1s don’t collide.
• Keep extras out of the number. Put the bare number in Number and leave the # off. Words such as “Annual” are better in the Title or a separate series.
• Prefer full names for creators. Credits written the same way across issues make searching by writer or artist reliable.

How to add metadata to existing comics

• A few comics: write the file by hand in a text editor, add it to the archive, and re-save. For a CBZ that means re-zipping; see how to make a CBZ file.
• A whole collection: use a comic tagging tool such as ComicTagger, an open-source tagger that can look issues up in online comic databases and write ComicInfo.xml into many archives at once. Check its matches on a sample before letting it loose on everything.
• On a server: Komga and Kavita read ComicInfo.xml when they scan a library, so tagging the files once benefits every app that connects to the server.

The guides that sit next to this one are Organise a digital comic collection and A Komga app for iPhone, iPad and Android.

Frequently asked questions

Is ComicInfo.xml required?

No. Comics open and read without it. It adds the series, issue number, creators and other details that let readers and servers sort and group a collection properly.

Does ComicInfo.xml work in CBR files?

Yes. It can sit inside any comic archive: CBZ, CBR, CB7 or CBT. CBZ is the easiest to edit, because ZIP tools are built into every desktop operating system.

Who created ComicInfo.xml?

It originated with ComicRack, a Windows comic manager. It has since been adopted widely and is now the de facto standard for comic metadata, read by comic servers such as Komga and Kavita and by many reader apps.

Why is my comic still showing the filename as its title?

Either the archive has no ComicInfo.xml, the file has no Title field, or the XML is invalid (often a bare &) and has been ignored. Fix the file, re-save the archive and import it again.

Your own files: TritonPanels reads comics you already have. It does not sell, host or supply comics, and it cannot open copy-protected (DRM) purchases that are locked to another store’s app. Komga, Kavita, Calibre, Dropbox and the other names on this page belong to their owners, who do not endorse TritonPanels.