# Id tag Track number and leading zeros
**URL:** https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177
**Category:** Support
**Created:** [December 9, 2002, 10:40am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177 "2002-12-09T10:40:35Z")
**Posts on this page:** 12
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2002, 10:40am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/1 "2002-12-09T10:40:35Z")
Hey,
I simply LOVE this application - I've tried A LOT of them and THIS is the one that is waaaay ahead of the rest.
;D
I do however have one small request. I'd love to see a way where you could change "Track numbers" from:
1
2
3
4
etc
to:
01
02
03
04
This would be awesome, as it is now I have to manually change from "1" to "01" etc using another application since Mp3tag actually changes is back to "1" :-/
If its to hard to add ability to change multiple files, an ability to do one and one would also be nice.
Keep up the EXCELLENT work !! ;D ;D
---
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2002, 10:44am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/2 "2002-12-09T10:44:45Z")
....ohh....I forgot to add WHY I want this ability...
its because if you have say an album with 13 tracks and use the multirename Tag -\> Filename you'll get them sorted like this:
Track 1.mp3
Track 10.mp3
Track 11.mp3
Track 2.mp3
Track 3.mp3
Track 4.mp3
Track 5.mp3
Track 6.mp3
Track 7.mp3
Track 8.mp3
Track 9.mp3
Whereas I'd like them to be:
Track 01.mp3
Track 02.mp3
Track 03.mp3
Track 04.mp3
Track 05.mp3
Track 06.mp3
Track 07.mp3
Track 08.mp3
Track 09.mp3
Track 10.mp3
Track 11.mp3
Hope this explains the need for this ability.
🙂
---
### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2002, 7:16pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/3 "2002-12-09T19:16:24Z")
Hey H3ctic,
thank you, for your nice feedback 😃
To solve your problem, you can first use the function 'Filename - Tag' with the format-string '%x - %n' (all track numbers will be saved in the ID3-tag)
To rename your files from 'Track x.mp3' to 'Track 0x.mp3' you can use the function 'Tag - Filename' with the formatstring 'Track %n'.
Hope this helps,
~ Florian
---
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 9, 2002, 8:12pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/4 "2002-12-09T20:12:02Z")
ahh...but...my problem is that the files are named:
artistX - songname.mp3
artistX - someothersongname.mp3
and the id-tags might be there or might be wrong, might include track but might not.
and all the files above could be on the same album....
Now...If I were to use 'Filename - Tag' with the format-string '%x - %n' I wouldnt get any tracknumbers into the IDtags, coz the filenames dont include tracknames.
You're right that if I were to use the function 'Tag - Filename' with the formatstring 'Track %n' It would add a leading zero, and this works halfway - but the IDtags would still be without the leading zeros...right ?
What I'd like to see is :
1. Ability to manually add 'leading zeros' to the Track# IDtag - as it is today the program will "replace" the "01" with "1" in the tags...
2. A way of "group selecting" multiple mp3 files that have IDtags with track-numbering _without_ the leading zero and convert them from "1" to "01"
---
### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2002, 7:32am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/5 "2002-12-10T07:32:51Z")
Mmh - but then I don't understand, why you want to add leading zeros to the track# in the id3-tag ...
~ Florian
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### Author:  [@Siegmund](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Siegmund)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2002, 10:56am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/6 "2002-12-10T10:56:12Z")
Hello h3ctic,
am I right with it?
You have MP3-files with and without track-Infos disordered. Now you sort them and you will have all MP3-files without a tag on the top and with a tag below. Now you select all files with a track-tag and you want to have a button or something that add's a leading zero to the track-number where it is missed.
Right?
But one question: when your files are with and without track, title, artist...-information: what about make them complete? If you have all files from an album, you can use mp3tag (and the freedb) to get the missing information. (Web-search, or get Infos from MP3)
I have downloaded the database to my local harddrive and searched all the CD's I own. I got the freedb-ID and used MP3Tag to complete all tags. Then I automatically (with a few macros) read the Infos in Excel and now I have a complete list of my CDs with all Infos.
Ciao,
Siegmund
---
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2002, 2:36pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/7 "2002-12-10T14:36:20Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Mmh - but then I don't understand, why you want to add leading zeros to the track# in the id3-tag ...
>
> ~ Florian
I want to be able to add leading zeros to the track# in the id3-tag because i want the idt3-tag to reflect the filenames and vice versa.
I want it all to be...just right.
;D
Most taggers (Your "namesake" at [http://www.umfosoft.com/](http://www.umfosoft.com/) is one example.) have the ability to add "001" or "01" or "1" as you want, the way this (otherwise) EXCELLENT 🙂 application decides to rearrange what I want (ie from "01" to "1") is somewhat irritating...hehe
---
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2002, 2:48pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/8 "2002-12-10T14:48:54Z")
Hey Siegmund,
> [@](#):
>
> Hello h3ctic,
> am I right with it?
> You have MP3-files with and without track-Infos disordered. Now you sort them and you will have all MP3-files without a tag on the top and with a tag below. Now you select all files with a track-tag and you want to have a button or something that add's a leading zero to the track-number where it is missed.
> Right?
Yes, this is (partially) right, there's more to it but this is one of the things it would fix.
> [@](#):
>
> But one question: when your files are with and without track, title, artist...-information: what about make them complete? If you have all files from an album, you can use mp3tag (and the freedb) to get the missing information. (Web-search, or get Infos from MP3)
> I have downloaded the database to my local harddrive and searched all the CD's I own. I got the freedb-ID and used MP3Tag to complete all tags. Then I automatically (with a few macros) read the Infos in Excel and now I have a complete list of my CDs with all Infos.
Yes, thats my goal. To fix all tags and do all the renaming.
🙂
---
### Author:  [@h3ctic](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/h3ctic)
#### Post date: [December 20, 2002, 1:19pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/9 "2002-12-20T13:19:15Z")
So....you think this functionallity will be added some time ? 🙂
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### Author:  [@esaleris](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/esaleris)
#### Post date: [May 1, 2003, 8:14am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/10 "2003-05-01T08:14:02Z")
Florian -
I think I can explain what Heretic was talking about (I encountered the same situation today).
For example - all my songs are in \ format - meaning no track number in the filename.
In order to sort by album and track, I use ID3 tags exclusively. But many programs sort your playlist with the tags this way:
Artist 1 Title
Artist 11 Title
Artist 12 Title
Artist 2 Title
His (and my request) is that there be an option for leading zeros so that players will order the album correctly in the playlist according to ID3 Tag. (Irregardless of the filename...)
I hope that clears things up. Let us know if you think this is a good idea...
BTW - I've been passing on info in my dormitory about your program - everybody loves it! (Well, the ones who know what MP3s are 😛 and care about tags, of course...)
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### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [May 13, 2003, 4:25pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/11 "2003-05-13T16:25:17Z")
Esaleris,
with the new Version V.2.11 of Mp3tag it's possible to save tracknumbers with leading zeros (see _Options, ID3_).
With best regards,
~ Florian
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### Author:  [@Florian](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/Florian)
#### Post date: [November 12, 2025, 2:28pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/id-tag-track-number-and-leading-zeros/177/12 "2025-11-12T14:28:34Z")
Please see [Docs → Auto Track- and Disc-Numbering](https://docs.mp3tag.de/converters/auto-numbering/) and the option for **Leading zeros for tracknumbers**.