Books A Million · EDI 856

The Books A Million 856 Ship Notice / ASN, explained

What Books A Million expects in the 856 — the carton-level shipment mirror that must arrive before the freight does — and how EDISQ's certified map handles it from your ERP.

Connect to Books A Million free 856 glossary guide

What Books A Million expects in the 856

Books A Million trades on X12 4010 over AS2. Beyond the base standard, watch these:

Cartonstitle-level carton contents for receiving reconciliation
TimingASN before the freight

How EDISQ maps it

The certified Books A Million 856 map loads when you enable the partner — fields auto-map from NetSuite, QuickBooks, Dynamics, and 33 other systems, validation runs against Books A Million's spec before transmission, and the sandbox replays Books A Million test scenarios until everything passes.

Common rejection reasons

Nearly all 856 rejections trace to reference data, not syntax: identifiers that don't match Books A Million's cross-references, echoed fields dropped from the original PO, or timing that misses the program window. EDISQ flags each before Books A Million ever sees the document.

Sample Books A Million 856

A representative 856 interchange addressed to Books A Million — envelope, shipment→order→pack→item hierarchy, and control totals:

1ISA*00*          *00*          *ZZ*ACMESUPPLY     *ZZ*BOOKSAMILLION  *260101*1200*U*00401*000000001*0*P*>~
2GS*SH*ACMESUPPLY*BOOKSAMILLION*20260101*1200*1*X*004010~
3ST*856*0001~
4BSN*00*SHIP0001*20260101*1200*0001~
5HL*1**S~
6TD1*CTN25*3****G*180*LB~
7TD5*B*2*UPSN*M~
8REF*BM*BOL000123~
9DTM*011*20260105~
10N1*ST*BOOKS A MILLION DC 5093*92*5093~
11HL*2*1*O~
12PRF*PO12345~
13HL*3*2*P~
14MAN*GM*00000123450000000017~
15HL*4*3*I~
16LIN**UP*012345678905~
17SN1**24*EA~
18CTT*4~
19SE*17*0001~
20GE*1*1~
21IEA*1*000000001~

FAQ

Which 856 version does Books A Million use?

X12 4010, delivered over AS2. The certified map tracks Books A Million's current companion guide.

How do I test a Books A Million 856?

The sandbox generates realistic Books A Million 856 scenarios against your live mapping — free, unlimited, invisible to Books A Million.

What does it cost?

Per document only: first 25/month free, then from $0.50, decreasing with volume. No partner or mapping fees.