From MobileRead

This page lists places where you can borrow modern and classic eBooks, audiobooks, and other digital content free of charge, or for a periodic fee. Be sure to check your local library's website too: if they have ebooks or audiobooks available, they may be your best source. You may also be interested in E-book stores, where you can purchase books and find some for free; and our page about Free eBooks.

edit] Overview

Many public libraries and university libraries have a web presence but require a locally obtained library card or student ID to use the web facilities to actually check out books. This reason is the eBooks and audiobooks are purchased using local tax dollars or other funding sources specific to that institution or jurisdiction. In some cases, you can just download an eBook or audiobook and keep it, but most of the time you have to actually check it out. For digital content that must be checked out, many libraries use a DRM system in conjunction with time limited licenses, so you do not need to return the book to the library. Instead, it will just time out, unless you renew or check it out again. Libraries generally own a limited number of licenses per book and manage them exactly like tangible, paper books. Once all of the licenses have been used by patrons, libraries won't let a patron check out a copy until someone else's license expires or is returned. The big advantage is that you can use your PDA, eBook reader, or other device to read the book, and after you have a library card you can do everything from your computer at home or anywhere else you can access the Internet.

Many public libraries' digital collections are hosted by OverDrive. To find a digital library that is not listed in the next section, you can use OverDrive Search to find your library. OverDrive also makes an app, but lots of eBook readers have built in support for the same Adobe DRM used by OverDrive. OverDrive in the US also supports Kindle DRM for Kindle formats and audiobooks at some libraries. For more information see Library DRM and Devices.

However there are other suppliers that also provide eBooks. Some libraries use 3M Cloud Library, Axis360, Enki Library from MARINet, Freading.com from Library Ideas, Hoopla, or RB Digital (previously OneClickdigital), in addition to or instead of OverDrive. When lending libraries use multiple service providers, they make different book collections available though each.

As a library patron, you may not have a choice in the apps you use for library checkout or reading. You will need to check with your library and determine which reading applications and checkout systems they support.

There are also Internet eBook libraries. Because they need money to purchase new books and build their collections, some charge a periodic fee for access. Most allow anyone to browse the collection, so be sure to see if they have books you will want to read before paying a fee. No doubt, this will be a growing field in the years to come. Please add to this page if you know of a widely accessible eBook lending library, or if you prefer, add to the thread linked at the bottom of this page.

The Worldcat article, "Find & Get Items From Other Libraries" (accessed July 15, 2016), provides the following list of digital libraries:

Generally, libraries offer eBooks in one of three formats, since these formats are popular and have DRM that supports time limited checkouts, i.e.: ePUB, MOBI, and PDF. In 2011, Amazon removed MOBI from most or all US libraries, and replaced it with AZW and its variations to support Kindle eBooks. At this time only OverDrive supports Kindle eBooks.

There are also specialized libraries that provide eBook to people with disabilities. The one with the largest collection available globally is Bookshare, which as of April 2014 had over 100,000 accessible eBooks available globally and over 225,000 available in the United States, but only to people with disabilities related to reading printed materials that qualify under copyright exceptions. Many countries have nationally-focused specialized libraries, an increasing number of which are offering eBooks.

Finally, there are also for-profit eBook and audiobook lending services that charge a periodic membership or subscription fee to borrow digital materials, such as Amazon Lending Library, Oyster Books (which following its acquisition by Google Play Books in September 2015 shut down its existing service in early 2016), and Scribd.

edit] Widely Accessible Libraries and Subscription Services

edit] Free

Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) - Free. Opened on April 18, 2013.

HathiTrust - HathiTrust is a partnership of academic & research institutions, offering a collection of millions of titles digitized from libraries around the world.

Library of Congress - Free. The main library for the USA; the Library of Congress contains lots of manuscripts and other historic documents owned by the US government. In particular, see the manuscript reading room for online reading from a web browser or downloads. Downloads are generally available in GIF and TIFF images, and in TXT and XML document formats.

Open Library - Free. A source for more than a million classics. The books are in ePub and PDF from participating libraries. Classics can be downloaded or read online. Copyrighted books can be borrowed using OverDrive. This site is connected to the Internet Archive.

edit] Paid Subscription Ebook Lending Services

Amazon Lending Library - For Prime customers, more than 700,000 Kindle formatted eBooks are available.

Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service that provides access to 1 million Kindle Books. Audio books are offered as well. Also includes Magazines.

Marvel comics offers fee based unlimited access to older comic books. They have iPad, iPhone, and Android apps.

Mera Library - Paid. Ebooks in a wide range of Indian languages - Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam - and in English. This is a subscription service that permits checkout (rental) for 1 month, maximum 2 books at a time.

Mofibo - Mofibo is a leading subscription service for ebooks and audio books. For a fixed price per month, readers can enjoy as many eBooks and audio books as they want. They are currently available in the Danish, Swedish and Dutch markets. It has apps for iOS and Android.

Scribd - A monthly fee-based reading service that streams books to one's device using the Scribd app or a web browser. The app is available for many devices.

World Public Library - An annual fee-based membership ($8.95 as of June 2015) to "the world’s largest aggregator of eBooks" that offers over 3,000,000 PDF ebooks to read online or download and save for later", as well as edocuments and MP3 audio books.

edit] USA Libraries that offer cards online or by mail, to non-residents

These libraries currently allow non-residents to obtain cards without appearing in person. They offer non-resident cards by mail or online.*

NOTE: * Michael Kozlowski. (November 3, 2019). "Free Library of Philadelphia stops selling cards to non-residents". GoodEreader.

NOTE: **eBook numbers on the table above were taken on 2020-05-09.

NOTE: *** right now(2020/07), fcpl only accept application for those who live in American, no more international non-resident readers.

edit] Limited Access USA

Note that some of the libraries listed below have non-resident library cards available for sale. Most libraries that offer non-resident cards require an in-person application for validation, such as Washington, DC, Hawaii State Public Library, and the New Orleans Library, in contrast to the USA Libraries that offer cards online or by mail, to non-residents.

edit] Alabama

Huntsville-Madison County and Guntersville Public Library -- Thousands of titles available in epub, pdf, and overdrive audio.

edit] Alaska

Listen Alaska -- Apply for a library card in person at any branch of the participating libraries.

edit] Arizona

Greater Phoenix Digital Library -- Over 18,000 titles available; 7092 epub, 1347 mobi, and 17,383 pdf titles. Member libraries are: Apache Junction, Arizona State Library, Casa Grande, Chandler, Glendale, Mesa, Peoria, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe If you do not live in the Phoenix area, you can apply for a library card in person at any branch library. Non-Maricopa County residents may purchase a card for $40. Non-Arizona residents are not eligible for cards.



edit] California

Black Gold Library System -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of May 4 2020, the collection includes 17,340 epub, and 378 pdf titles.



Long Beach Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of May 2011, the collection includes 1299 epub, and 23 pdf titles.



Los Angeles Public Library (City) -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of May 4 2020 the overdrive collection has 281,122 epubs. As of April 2011, the overdrive collection includes 243 mobi, 3086 pdf, 2298 wmv video, and 783 wma music titles.



Northern California Digital Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011 the collection includes 258 epub, 279 mobi, and 1747 pdf titles. As of March 2011 the support for Alameda County libraries seems to have been dropped.



NorthNet Library System Supports the following County libraries As of April 2011, the collection includes 717 epub titles.



Pasadena-Glendale Digital Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any Glendale or Pasadena branch libraries. As of April 2011, the collection includes 100 epub, 1159 pdf, 141 wmv video, and 353 wma music titles.



Sacramento Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of June 2011, the collection includes 1554 epub, and 1006 pdf titles.



San Francisco Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011, the collection includes 4604 epub, 388 mobi, and 1460 pdf, 1565 wmv video, and 293 music titles. As of February 2015, the collection includes 53,000 epub titles.



San Jose Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011, the collection includes 2104 epub, 912 mobi, 3671 pdf, and 1172 music titles.



Santa Clara County Library -- electronic text books from California free book imitative. They have eBooks and audio books from Overdrive, Technical eBooks from Safari, Playaway audio books, Bookflix, and Tumblebooks for kids. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011, the collection includes 1210 epub, and 965 pdf titles.



Santa Cruz Public Library -- Has books from 5 sources: Netlibrary, the Northern California Digital Library/Overdrive Download Center, Safari Computer eBooks, Tumblebooks for Kids, and the Gale Virtual Reference Library. They have eBooks, audio books, and music available.

Santa Monica Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011, the collection includes 2056 epub, and 134 pdf titles.



Southern California Digital Library -- Available to residents of the state of California. Apply in person at any branch library. As of April 2011, the collection includes 293 epub, and 615 pdf titles.



edit] Colorado

Colorado Springs - Pikes Peak Library District As of August 2010 the collection includes 469 epub and 1746 pdf titles.



Denver -- Available to Denver Library patrons. As of August 2010 the collection includes 667 epub, 1149 mobi, and 3484 pdf titles.



Douglas County Libraries As of August 2010 the collection includes 857 epub and 195 pdf titles.



Fort Collins - Poudre River Public Library As of March 2011 the collection includes 899 epub and 85 pdf titles.



edit] Connecticut

edit] Delaware

Delaware's ebook collection Available to Delaware residents using their local library card. No PIN required. Catalog for all library items is statewide. Out of state cards Library cards to non-residents are available but you must obtain a library card in person.

edit] District of Columbia

Washington, D.C. -- Residents are those in qualifying counties in the DC metro area and can apply online for an electronic download-only card number or stop in any branch for a resident card. There are non-resident cards with a fee of $20 a year which can be picked up, in person, at the Martin Luther King Library.

UPDATE: They no longer issue download only cards. You must go IN PERSON to get a non-resident card.

edit] Florida

Lee County Library System aka Download Depot -- Available to Lee County, FL residents. Library web site Also available to residents of participating SWFLN reciprocal borrowing libraries in Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hendry, Lee and Monroe Counties. Eligible SWFLN libraries include: Ave Maria University, Charlotte County Library System, Collier County Public Library, DeSoto County Library, Edison State College, Florida Gulf Coast University Library, Florida Keys Community College, Fort Myers Beach Public Library, Glades County Public Libary, Hardee County Public Library, Hendry County Library Cooperative, Highlands County Library System, Hodges University Library, Lee County Library System, Okeechobee County Public Library, Rasmussen College Library, Sanibel Public Library, Southwest Florida College Library, St. Johns County Public Library System A non-resident card is available for $15 (valid for 3 months) or $60 (valid for 1 year). The card must be obtained in person. Obtaining a Library Card As of October 2011, the collection includes 13,167 ebook titles.



Orange County Library System -- See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply online for a library card; the fee is currently $125/year. As of September 2011, the collection includes 12,810 ebook titles.

Pinellas County Library Cooperative -- See About PPLC for list of member libraries and residency requirement. You can check out and download the following types of digital materials from the PPLC Digital Media Catalog: Adobe® EPUB eBooks, Adobe® PDF eBooks, OverDrive WMA Audiobooks, OverDrive MP3 Audiobooks, OverDrive Music.

edit] Georgia

Cobb County Public Library -- Available to residents of Cobb County, people who own property or businesses within Cobb County, schools and businesses in Cobb County, and current Cobb County government employees. Non-county residents can obtain a library card; the fee is $25 per person (via cash or check) and are valid for one year. All applications must be presented in person. As of January 27 2013, the collection includes 2104 Kindle, 2260 Adobe epub, 1165 Adobe pdf, and 119 Open epub titles.

As of February 6,2018 it is $40 per person for non residents of Cobb County.

edit] Hawaii

Hawaii State Public Library -- Available to residents of the state of Hawaii and military personnel (with copies of orders). Non-resident cards are available; the fee is $25 and the cards are valid for 5 years. A pdf application form is available online, but the application must be presented at a library branch in person. As of July 2011 the collection includes 1188 epub, 6713 pdf, and 584 mobi titles.

edit] Idaho

Boise Public Library --Available to [1] Boise Public and Garden City Library cardholders. Serves all patrons of Boise and Garden City library branches.

edit] Iowa

Metro Library Network -- Serves registered patrons of either Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha or Marion Iowa libraries.

Sioux Center Public Library -- Serves registered patrons of Sioux Center Public Library

edit] Illinois

Chicago -- Available to residents of the Chicago area and some other residents of the state of Illinois.

My Media Mall -- Available to card holders of participating suburban libraries in Illinois. Participating libraries include: Alsip-Merrionette Park Public Library District Antioch Public Library Arlington Heights Memorial Library Aurora Public Library Barrington Public Library District - serves residents of all or part of: Algonquin Barrington Barrington Hills Deer Park Fox River Grove Hoffman Estates Kildeer Lake Barrington Lake Zurich North Barrington Palatine Port Barrington South Barrington Tower Lakes some unincorporated areas Benton Public Library (Only if you are a city resident) Bloomingdale Public Library Bloomington Public Library Bradley Public Library District Brookfield Public Library Cary Area Public Library District Cherry Valley Public Library District Cook Memorial Public Library District Crete Public Library District Des Plaines Public Library Booth Library - Eastern Illinois University Elk Grove Village Public Library Elmhurst Public Library Evanston Public Library Flossmoor Public Library Fox Lake District Library Fox River Grove Memorial Library Fremont Public Library District Gail Borden Public Library District Glencoe Public Library Glenside Public Library District Glenview Public Library Grayslake Area Public Library District - serves residents of all or part of: Avon Township Grayslake Hainesville Highland Lake Round Lake Round Lake Beach Round Lake Park Third Lake Highland Park Public Library Huntley Area Public Library District Itasca Community Library CLC Libraries and Instructional Services - College of Lake County Lake Forest Library Lincoln Trail Libraries System Lincolnwood Public Library Morton Grove Public Library Mount Prospect Public Library Niles Public Library District Northbrook Public Library Palatine Public Library District Plainfield Public Library District Prairie Trails Public Library Riverside Public Library Rockford Public Library Rolling Meadows Library Schaumburg Township District Library Vernon Area Public Library District Villa Park Public Library Warren-Newport Public Library Wauconda Area Library West Chicago Public Library District Westchester Public Library Wilmette Public Library Winnetka-Northfield Public Library District Wood Dale Public Library Woodstock Public Library Zion-Benton Public Library



North Suburban Digital Consortium -- available to cardholders at the following libraries: Algonquin Area Public Library District Crystal Lake Public Library Dundee Township Public Library District Ela Area Public Library District Indian Trails Public Library District McHenry Public Library District Park Ridge Public Library Skokie Public Library



edit] Indiana

Hancock County -- Available to residents of the Hancock County.

Indiana Digital Media - See an up-to-date list of Participating Indiana Libraries here Millions of downloadable eBooks (for Kindle, Nook, PDF & more readers) Audio, Video and Audiobooks. Currently available to members of the following Indiana libraries: Frankfort Community Public Library LaPorte County Public Library Monroe County Public Library Morrisson-Reeves Library Muncie Public Library Speedway Public Library Tippecanoe County Public Library Vigo County Public Library Westfield Public Library



All you need is your library card number and PIN - no charges, no late fees & place holds for free (when your book is ready is available you'll receive an email notifying you that you have 3 days to log-in and check it out).

Indianapolis-Marion County - See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply in person for a library card. Current fee is $65/year or Indiana residents may purchase a PLAC (Public Library Access Card) from their local library system. As of August 2010, the collections consists of over 3800 epub titles.

edit] Kansas

State of Kansas Library - Available to anyone with a Kansas State Library Card which you can ask for at any Kansas Public Library

edit] Kentucky

Louisville, KY Public Library

edit] Louisiana

New Orleans -- Available to residents of the metro area of New Orleans. Nonresidents can apply by mail for $50 per year. 268 epub and PDF books.

edit] Maryland

Maryland's Digital eLibrary Consortium Available to Maryland residents using their local library card. The following library systems are participants: Anne Arundel County Public Library Baltimore County Public Library Carroll County Public Library Caroline County Public Library Cecil County Public Library Enoch Pratt Free Library (Baltimore City) Frederick County Public Libraries Harford County Public Library Howard County Library System (5542 Kindle, 5379 ePub, 3870 PDF) Kent County Public Library Lower Shore Library Consortium Dorchester County Public Library Somerset County Library Wicomico Public Library Worcester County Library Montgomery County Public Libraries (4458 Kindle, 4246 ePub, 2970 PDF) Queen Anne's County Free Library Southern Maryland Regional Library Association Calvert Library Charles County Public Library St. Marys County Library Talbot County Free Library Western Maryland Regional Library Allegany County Library System The Ruth Enlow Library of Garrett County Washington County Free Library



Prince George's County Memorial Library System Digital Collection Available to residents of Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Northern Virginia with a valid Prince George's County Memorial Library System card.

edit] Massachusetts

Boston -- Available to residents of the state of Massachusetts.

CLAMS - Cape Libraries Automated Materials Sharing -- Available to residents of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket who have a CLAMS library card.

Minuteman Library Network -- Available to residents of the Metrowest region of Massachusetts.

SAILS Library Network -- Available to members of SAILS libraries

edit] Michigan

The Library Network --43 libraries in The Library Network a library cooperative in Southeastern Michigan offer free e-books and e-audiobooks for cardholders in participating communities. Library card number and PIN required for download.

Midwest Collaborative for Library Services -- There are many participating libraries in the state. For example, it is available to residents of the Dearborn area where nonresidents can apply in person for $80 per year. It is available to residents of the Kalamazoo area where nonresidents can apply in person for $185 per year. It is available to residents of the Grosse Pointe area where nonresidents can apply in person for $100 per year.

West Bloomfield -- Available to residents.

edit] Minnesota

Hennepin County -- Available to all residents of Hennepin County. Minnesota residents who live outside of Hennepin County who have a membership at a local library that participates in a regional library network may use their local library card to apply for a Hennepin County library card free of charge.

Rochester -- Available to residents of the state of Minnesota. Nonresidents can apply in person for $10 for two months. All library card applications must be made in person at the library, and the applicant must have a photo I.D. with a current address.

edit] Mississippi

Starkville -- Available to residents.

edit] Missouri

Columbia -- Available to residents of the state of Missouri.

Mid-Continent Public Library -- There are several types of library cards available which vary based on length and renewal options, not the amount of digital content accessible. MCPL has reciprocal agreements with several library systems in the Greater Kansas City Area. Missouri and Kansas residents from outside of this area may purchase a year-long card in-person from any MCPL branch. Residents of the US from out-of-state may also purchase a 6-month Research Card in-person at the Midwest Genealogy Center, which can only be renewed in-person.

edit] Nebraska

Omaha -- Available to residents of Douglas County. Nonresidents can apply by mail for $75 per year or $25 for 4 months.

edit] Nevada

Las Vegas - Clark County -- Available to residents of the state of Nevada. Guest card for non-residents; expires in three months but is renewable, but does not allow any online borrowing privileges. Apply in person with current ID showing permanent address. As of August 2010 the collection includes 275 epub, 839 mobi, and 3741 pdf titles.

Reno - Washoe County Available to Nevada residents as well as some neighboring California counties. Full details for patron cards. Non-resident cards available for $50.00 per year. As of February 2, 2011, collection includes 1,372 fiction titles and 487 non-fiction titles. Of these, 1546 are ePubs and 317 are pdfs.

edit] New Jersey

Cherry Hill -- Available to residents of nearby counties in the state of New Jersey.

ListenNJ -- Available to patrons of Berkeley Heights Public Library, Cranford Public Library, Clark Public Library, East Brunswick Public Library, East Orange Public Library, Educational Testing Service/Carl C. Brigham Library, Hoboken Public Library, INFOLINK-CJRLC, Keansburg High School Library, Kearny Public Library, Libraries of Middlesex Automation Consortium, Linden Free Public Library, Mercer County Library System, Middletown Public Library, Millburn Free Public Library, Monmouth County Library, Montclair Public Library, New Jersey State Library, Newark Public Library, Ocean County Library, Princeton Public Library, South Orange Public Library, South Plainfield Public Library, Springfield Free Public Library, Summit Free Public Library, Trenton Free Public Library, West Orange Public Library, Westfield Memorial Library, and Woodbridge Public Library.

Somerset County -- Available to residents of Somerset County (Bound Brook, Bridgewater, Hillsborough, Mary Jacobs, North Plainfield, Peapack Gladstone, Warren Township, and Watchung branches).

South Jersey Regional Library Cooperative -- Digital Download Center available to cooperative member libraries (Atlantic City Free Public Library, Atlantic County Library System, Audubon Public Library, Avalon Public Library, Bridgeton Public Library, Burlington Township Libraries, Camden County Library System, Cape May County Library System, Cherry Hill Library, Collingswood Public Library, Cumberland County Library, Deptford Public Library, Gloucester City Library, Gloucester County College, Haddon Heights Public Library, Haddonfield Public Library, Linwood Public Library, Margaret E. Heggan Library, Margate City Public Library, Millville Public Library, Moorestown Library, Mount Laurel Library, The Ocean City Free Public Library, Pennsauken Free Public Library, Pennsville Public Library, Salem Free Public Library, The Free Public Library of Monroe, Vineland Public Library, Washington Township Public Schools, West Deptford Free Public Library, Willingboro Public Library).

edit] New Mexico

Albuquerque/Bernalillo -- Available to residents, nonresidents of New Mexico may apply in person.

edit] New York

Brooklyn Public Library -- Available to New York State residents. Non-resident cards are available; users may apply online, pay the fee online, and email a valid ID for card activation, allowing access to Overdrive website (as of July 2016). The fee is currently $50/year. As of July 2016, the collection includes 84367 epub, 73342 mobi, and 26211 PDF titles.

Buffalo & Erie County -- Available to the following: Erie County residents, temporary residents and people who work or own property in Erie County. New York State residents of other counties can apply in person for $20. As of August 2010 the collection includes 1566 epub and 711 pdf titles.

Nassau County Digital Doorway -- Available to Nassau County residents, only.

New York Public Library (NYPL) -- Available to New York State residents. As of June 2009, nonresidents can no longer apply for a fee-based card. As of August 2010, over 15,000 ebooks are available (1563 epub, 5809 mobi, 13,321 pdf).

Queens Borough Public Library System -- You may obtain a free library card if you live, work, go to school, or own property in New York State.

edit] North Carolina

Charlotte-Mecklenburg County -- See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply online for library card and pay electronically to receive a card by mail; fee is currently $45/year (as of March 2013). As of August 2010, collection contains 105 ePub, 59 mobi, and 177 pdf titles.

North Carolina Digital Library -- North Carolina Digital Library members include: Buncombe County, Catawba County, CMC Library Consortium, Davidson County, Gaston-Lincoln Regional, Haywood County, Hickory Public, Mooresville Public, Onslow County, Southern Pines Public, Caldwell County, Chapel Hill Public, Cumberland County, Forsyth County, Greensboro Public, Henderson County, High Point Public, New Hanover County, Rowan Public, and Transylvania County As of August 2010, the collection listed 638 ePub, 19 mobi, and 204 pdf titles. Some member libraries may offer non-resident cards (such as Chapel Hill Public Library at $60/year - must apply in person).



Wake County -- See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply in person for a library card at a cost of $25/year. Collection went live August 2010 with 154 ePub titles.

edit] Ohio

Akron-Summit County Public Library -- Available to residents of Summit County from OverDrive

Clermont County -- Available to residents of Clermont County. Applications from nonresidents are accepted in person for free.

CLEVNET -- Available to residents of the state of Ohio. Member libraries include: Cleveland Public Library, Barberton Public Library, Bellevue Public Library, Birchard Public Library, Burton Public Library, Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library, Clyde Public Library, East Cleveland Public Library, Elyria Public Library, Euclid Public Library, Fairport Harbor Public Library, Hudson Library & Historical Society, Huron Public Library, Kirtland Public Library, Lorain Public Library, Madison Public Library, Medina County District Library, Milan - Berlin Township Public Library, Orrville Public Library, Peninsula Library, Perry Public Library, Ritter Public Library, Sandusky Library, Shaker Heights Public Library, Twinsburg Public Library, Wayne County Public Library, Wickliffe Public Library, Willoughby - Eastlake Public Library. The following non-public institutions are participating members of the CLEVNET consortium: Cleveland Law Library, Global Issues Resource Center, Hawken School. The collection includes 12,262 Adobe EPUB, 13,717 Adobe PDF, and 5,329 Mobipocket eBooks. (February 2011) See this thread for details.



Cuyahoga County -- Available to residents and CLEVNET members.

Dayton -- Available to residents.

Digital Downloads -- Digital Downloads is a collaboration of multiple libraries. Member libraries include: Bexley Public Library, Columbus Metropolitan Library, Fairfield County District Library, Grandview Heights Public Library, Greene County Public Library, Kenton County Public Library, Marysville Public Library, Pickaway County Public Library, Pickerington Public Library, Plain City Public Library, Southwest Public Libraries, Toledo Lucas County Public Library, Upper Arlington Public Library, Worthington Public Library, Washington-Centerville Public Library. Some libraries may allow non-resident cards. Columbus Metropolitan provides free cards to all Ohio residents. The collection includes 1,890 EPUB, 4,030 Adobe PDF, and 308 Mobipocket eBooks. (February 2011)



Ohio eBook Project -- The Ohio eBook Project is a consortium of member libraries. Member libraries include: Amherst Public Library, Archbold Community Library, Ashtabula County District Library, Auglaize County Public District Library, Avon Lake Public Library, The Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County, Clark County Public Library, Clermont County Public Library, Columbiana Public Library, Community Library (Sunbury), Cuyahoga Falls Library, Delaware County District Library, Franklin-Springboro Public Library, Geauga County Public Library, Great Oaks Institute, Herrick Memorial Library, Kent Free Library, Lane Public Library, Lebanon Public Library, Lima Public Library, London Public Library, Louisville Public Library, Mansfield-Richland County Public Library, Marion Public Library, Mary L. Cook Public Library, Mason Public Library, Massillon Public Library, Muskingum County Library System, North Canton Public Library, Norwalk Public Library, Owens Community College, Portsmouth Public Library, Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County, SEO Library Consortium, Shelby County Libraries, Sinclair Community College, Stark County District Library, State Library of Ohio, Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library, Wadsworth Public Library, Westerville Public Library, Wright Memorial Public Library. Some libraries may offer non-resident cards. One example is the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County which allows you to apply in person for a fee of $25/year. The State Library of Ohio issues free cards to all Ohio residents. The collection includes 1,574 Adobe EPUB, 2,189 Adobe PDF, and 469 Mobipocket eBooks. (February 2011)



SEO Library Consortium -- The SEO Library Consortium is comprised of the same member libraries as The Ohio eBook Project. Both web sites link to each other with the message "Didn't find what you need? Click here for more titles." The collection includes 1,077 Adobe EPUB, 4,892 Adobe PDF, and 854 Mobipocket eBooks. (February 2011)



Westerville County -- Available to residents.

edit] Oklahoma

Metropolitan Library System -- Oklahoma City Metro Area library system; See the library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply in person; the current fee is $40/year. As of August 2010 the collection includes 1218 epub titles.

Tulsa City-County Audio and Ebooks -- Tulsa City-County Library System; Library use privileges for residents and non-residents may be found at Library Cards(PDF). The current fee is $50/year for non-residents.

edit] Oregon

Oregon Digital Library Consortium -- A multiple member library system. Member libraries include: Albany Public Library, Astoria Public Library, CCRLS (Chemeketa Cooperative Regional Library Service), CRSN (Coastal Resource Sharing Network), Coos County Library Service District, Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, Cottage Grove Public Library, Creswell Library, Crook County Library, Curry Public Library District, Douglas County Library System, Eugene Public Library, Fern Ridge Library, Gorge LINK (Hood River County Library and The Dalles Wasco County Library), Jackson County Library Services, Josephine Community Libraries, Junction City Public Library, Klamath County Library District, Lebanon Public Library, LEO Listens. Libraries in Clackamas County. Oakridge Public Library, Seaside Public Library, Siuslaw Public Library District, Springfield Public Library, St. Helens Public Library, Washington County Cooperative Library Services Several of the libraries offer non-resident cards; users must apply in person. Fees vary (Corvallis-Benton $90/yr; Eugene $120/yr; WCCLS $95/yr; Multnomah $180/yr). Multnomah County Library no longer participates in the consortium but offer both Overdrive and Hoopla services. As of April 2017 the collection includes 39,919 total items, of which 23,360 are epub titles, 21,087 are Kindle titles, and 10,144 pdf titles. There are also 11,000+ audiobooks.



edit] Pennsylvania

The Delaware County Library System offers downloadable audiobooks, downloadable ebooks, and digital magazines.

The Peters Township Public Library in Washington County offers downloadable ebooks and audiobooks.

edit] Tennessee

R.E.A.D.S. -- R.E.A.D.S. is the Regional eBook & Audio Download System of Tennessee. It is comprised of most of the public libraries in Tennessee but excludes the major city libraries (Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville-Knox County, and Chattanooga-Hamilton County). Some of the libraries allow non-residents from surrounding areas to get a free library card. As of May 2018, the collection includes 45,747 ebook titles.

edit] Texas

Bibliotech (Bexar County Digital Library) - Bexar County residency required.

Harris County - See library web site for residency requirements. No information for non-resident applications was found on the web site. As of August 2010 the collection includes 659 epub, 795 mobi, and 3034 pdf titles.

Irving Public Library - See this site for card requirements. Proudly serving the City of Irving, TX. Collection contains thousands of text and audio ebooks.

Lubbock Public Libraries - See library web site for library card application. Must be a resident of West Texas to get a library card. Must send in card application with picture ID/Texas address. Non-residents of Texas are not eligible to receive a library card. As of January 2011 the collection includes 894 epub, 279 mobi, and 255 pdf titles.

edit] Utah

Pioneer - Utah's Online Library -- Pioneer is a multi library system which includes most, if not all, Utah public libraries with the exception of Salt Lake County. Some libraries offer non-resident cards such as Park City ($40/year), Logan ($100/yr), and Orem ($80/yr). As of August 2010 the collection includes 250 epub, 234 pdf, and 52 mobi titles.

Salt Lake County -- See library web site for residency and application requirements. Out-of-county or out-of-state residents may purchase a card for $80/year or $40/6 mo. The collection includes 9123 epub, 5243 mobi, and 5795 pdf titles. (Accurate as of 2/9/11)

edit] Virginia

Alexandria.lib -- ePUB, PDF, MP3 for portable devices.

Arlington County -- Available to residents, students, and workers in Arlington as well as residents of reciprocal library jurisdictions. District of Columbia Virginia City of Alexandria City of Falls Church Fairfax County - Available to residents, students, and workers in Fairfax County as well as residents of reciprocal library jurisdictions. Fauquier County Loudoun County Maryland Frederick County Montgomery County Prince George's County



Chesterfield County -- Chesterfield County library card is required.

Fairfax County -- See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents can apply by mail for a library card; the current fee is $27/year. As of August 2010, the collection includes 879 epub, 269 mobi, and 1892 pdf titles.

Fauquier County -- Available to residents, students, and workers and residents of reciprocal library jurisdictions. Nonresidents can apply for $15 annual fee.

Loudoun County includes Overdrive, Netlibrary, and Safari IT books -- Available to residents, students, and workers of Loudoun County, as well as residents of reciprocal jurisdictions including not only the D.C. Metropolitan area but also Clark and Frederick Counties of Virginia, the Thomas Balch library in Leesburg, Virginia, and Charles County of Maryland.

The Mary Riley Styles Public Library for the City of Falls Church -- The NetLibrary database contains browse only books without downloading. Available to residents and those living in reciprocal jurisdictions.

Virginia Beach -- See library web site for residency requirements. Non-residents may apply in person for a library card. The current fee is $35/year. As of August 2010 the collection includes 3134 epub titles and 1869 pdf titles.

edit] Washington

King County -- Available to residents of King and adjoining counties. Patrons visiting longer than one month but less than six months may be issued visitors’ cards with a two-item limit. Non-resident cards apparently not available to anyone from out of the area. As of August 2010, the collection includes 244 epub, 2790 mobi, and 3900 pdf titles.

Kitsap Regional Library -- Available to Kitsap County residents, as well as other Washington residents who live in "an area of Washington State that supports public library service." You'll also need to visit a library branch in person.

Pierce County Library -- Available to residents of Pierce and unincorporated Pierce County.

Seattle Public Library -- Available to residents of Seattle, and have reciprocal agreements with certain nearby libraries. Nonresidents who live in the state of Washington can apply for $85/year. As of May 2020 the collection includes 114,063 OverDrive EPUB titles. Temporary cards are available for visitors, $25 for three months.

Tacoma Public Library -- Available for free to city residents and certain non-residents. Non-resident cards are available at $28 for six months or $56 per year. Visitors can get e-cards that allow access to ebooks and other electronic resources, but can't check out physical materials.

Timberland Regional Library -- Available to nearly all residents of Thurston, Lewis, Grays Harbor, Mason and Pacific counties.

Washington Anytime Library -- Available for free to the patrons of any of the participating libraries (nearly forty libraries at last count).

Many of these systems also have reciprocal agreements so if, for example, you're a patron of Timberland Regional Library you can also get cards at King County, Kitsap, Pierce County, and Seattle Public library. For more information check out the Reciprocal Borrowing Agreements.

edit] Limited Access Outside of the USA

edit] Asia

edit] Singapore

The National Library Board Singapore Requires a valid National Registration Identification Card (NRIC) or library card number to register.

Singapore Public Library - This Library used to have access from anywhere in the world. Sign up as "Foreigner without FIN" They have more than 1 million eBooks. Recently this library has been terminating non-resident accounts with a message stating that the library is only for use of alien residents in Singapore.

edit] Turkey

Turkish University, Mimar Sinan

edit] Canada

edit] Alberta

Calgary, Alberta Public Library -- As of August 2010 the collection includes 3390 epub, 92 mobi, and 1748 pdf titles.

edit] British Columbia

British Columbia’s “Library to Go” -- As of August 2010 the collection includes 1920 epub, 240 mobi, and 5004 pdf titles.

edit] Manitoba

Manitoba Library System -- As of August 2010 the collection includes 2123 epub, 377 mobi, and 2597 pdf titles. One of the member libraries, Winnipeg Public Library does offer non-resident cards for $130/year.

edit] New Brunswick

Newfoundland & Labrador Public Library (eLibrary NLPL)

edit] Northwest Territories

edit] Nova Scotia

Halifax Public Library - As of October 2013 has over 16,000 books in ePub and PDF formats

edit] Nunavut

edit] Ontario

edit] PEI

edit] Quebec

Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, Montréal, "BANQ" - National Library of Québec - Both English and French pages are available.

edit] Saskatchewan

edit] Yukon Territory

edit] Europe

edit] Denmark

The Royal Library. Public libraries

edit] Finland

Helmet Web Library, Vaski Web Library.

edit] Germany

Onleihe.net





edit] Ireland





edit] The Netherlands

Almere - eBooks available

Amsterdam - eBooks available

Sittard-Geleen e.o. - eBooks available via netlibrary.com

edit] Spain

edit] Sweden

Libraries in Sweden List of libraries which offer e-books. (Sorted by Län)

Stockholm Public Library e-books Biblioteket.se - Stockholm Public Library

edit] United Kingdom

edit] London and City of London

32 Boroughs plus the City of London





edit] England

edit] Wales

edit] Northern Ireland

edit] Scotland

Orkney Islands Orkney Islands Overdrive

edit] Oceania

edit] Australia

Australia has an excellent Public Library System, mostly based on local government areas. Whilst some limit memberships to their particular area and perhaps some surrounding ones, many offer memberships to residents of their particular state. Some also offer memberships to interstate residents. At the time of making this entry I have not come across any Australian libraries offering paid memberships or memberships to residents of other countries.

There are some libraries which allow those eligible to join online without physically visiting the library. Such memberships normally allow access to Databases and borrowing of ebooks through Overdrive and other services. There does not appear to be any list of such libraries, so I'm starting one here with two initial entries. If you come across more please add them.

edit] Libraries allowing online memberships without physical visit

City of Port Phillip Library (Victoria) This library seems to accept interstate members. Online applicants are provided a temporary membership number, immediately. (Applicants choose their password/PIN during the application process.)

Warringah Council Library (New South Wales) Policy is not clear but this library does accept NSW residents. Applicants receive a welcome email immediately upon applying, indicating their card will arrive in the mail.

edit] Libraries by State

edit] Western Australia

Western Australia Public Libraries -- As of February 2014, the collection includes over 14,000 titles in epub and PDF formats. Free access available to members of over 230 WA public libraries. Some member libraries may have access to audiobooks and additional ebook titles.

edit] New Zealand

edit] South America

edit] Ecuador

Centro de Información Bibliotecario - The ESPOL Library and Information Center (limited data in English). There is a Virtual Library - Biblioteca Virtual.

edit] Finding Libraries

Library software used to support libraries is only available from a few sources. Some of them provide a list of customers (i.e., participating libraries and other providers of digital material), which can be useful in determining whether or not your library supports eBooks from that source.

3M Cloud Library's "Find My Library" search tool, located in the bottom left corner of this page, allows users to "Lookup your library" in Canada and the USA

Axis 360's "Find a Library" tool allows users to "Discover the libraries who are part of the Axis 360 community"

Freading's "Chooser/Find Library" tool is accessible by clicking the Login button on the home page, selecting country, and then clicking "Find Library"; using additional drop-down menus facilitates more refined searches

Hoopla Digital's "Choose Your Library" page automatically displays nearby libraries (based on a reading of the IP location of the device used to access it) as well as a drop-down menu one can use to browse and search for participating libraries

"Overdrive Search" allow users to find their library by name or location; libraries that are using the Overdrive software are listed by library system/consortium

edit] Additional information

edit] Audio Books

Libraries may also support audio books or music formats in WMA that support time limited checkout. Generally this will require a copy of Windows Media player on a PC to support DRM, although some portable devices include this support. Some libraries lend MP3 files that do not have DRM.

edit] Preservation

Government and private libraries are also concerned with the preservation of electronic documents‎‎.

edit] Most downloaded eBooks

Most Downloaded eBooks from Libraries

edit] North American Libraries with the largest collections

As of August 2010, the following libraries from the USA and Canada seem to have the largest ebook collections:

CLEVNET Consortium, Northeast OH -- over 18,000

Greater Phoenix Digital Library, AZ -- over 18,000

Seattle Public Library, Seattle, WA -- over 15,000

New York Public Library (NYPL), Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, NY -- over 15,000

Orange County, FL -- over 11,000

Salt Lake County, UT -- over 9,000

Lee County, FL -- over 8,000

Oklahoma City, OK --over 7000

District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL), Washington, DC -- over 7,000

Oregon Digital Library, OR -- almost 7,000

British Columbia, Canada -- over 6,000

Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn, NY -- over 6,000

Los Angeles, CA -- over 6,000

R.E.A.D.S. (Tennessee) -- over 6,000

Calgary, Canada -- over 5,000

Virginia Beach, VA -- 5,000

Columbus, OH -- almost 5,000

Clark County, NV -- over 4,000

King County, WA -- over 4,000

Manitoba, Canada -- over 4,000

San Francisco, CA -- over 4,000

San Jose, CA -- over 4,000

See also

edit] Threads to review for more information