You might think that the only way to get ebooks on your Kindle is to buy them from Amazon. But the truth is that you have access to a literal library of free books. All you need is a library card.
That’s right. Switching from physical to digital books doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the benefits of a public library. Checking out books isn’t as simple as walking into a library and wandering through the shelves, but it works fine once you get past the initial setup.
You are reading: Borrow books from library on kindle
How is this different from checking out physical books in a library? well, actually, it’s quite similar. there are only a certain number of e-books available. if they are all checked out, you can make a reservation. you are allowed to have the ebook for a specified number of days, after which it is automatically returned.
what you will need
- The most important thing you’ll need is a kindle e-reader, like the kindle paperwhite, or a device with the kindle app. That could be a Kindle Fire tablet, or an iPhone, iPad, or Android device.
- Second, you should check to make sure your local library or any library you’re interested in joining supports Overdrive lending. This is the service that Amazon officially supports and is what we will use in this guide. go to this page and find your library.
- lastly, you’ll need to get a library card from the library you want to use. some libraries allow you to get them online, but others require you to visit the physical location. each library is different, so check with yours.
tl;dr: you need a kindle or the kindle app and a library card from a library that participates with overdrive. that’s it!
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how to find e-books from your library
The first thing you need to do is find an e-book to rent from your library. To do this, you’ll need to visit the website of the library you have a card with. the screenshots below are specific to my library, but it should be a similar process.
find your library on the overdrive search map using a desktop web browser such as chrome and select “visit the library’s website”.
This will take you to your library’s website or the network your library belongs to. click “sign in” and enter your library card number. you may need to select your specific library if you are on a network website.
then find a book you want to read. of the results, use the search filters to see only “kindle books”.
find a book that is tagged as “available” and select it.
now, just click the “borrow” button.
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Choose how long you want to borrow the book for. options are usually 7 or 14 days. then click “borrow”.
A confirmation popup will appear with additional information. the next step is to click “read now with kindle”.
this will take you to the book’s amazon listing. Make sure you’re signed in with the same account as your kindle e-reader or app, and then click “get book from library”.
amazon will confirm that you’ve checked out the book and it will appear on your kindle devices and apps the next time they sync.
how to borrow e-books on your phone
The process described above was done in a web browser on a computer, but you can also browse books with overdrive’s handy “libby” app. the process is similar, but we’ll show you how to do it.
download the libby app on your iphone, ipad or android device.
Once installed, the app will ask if you have a library card. tap “yes”.
You will then have a few options to select your library. the “yes, guess my library” option will use your location.
After you have selected your library, you will be guided to enter your library card number.
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Once everything is taken care of, you’re ready to search for eBooks. use the search tab at the bottom to do this.
use the “refine” tool on the results page to select “kindle” in the “media” section.
find a book that says “borrow”. books that are not currently available will say “hold”.
tap “borrow” on the book info page.
select how many days you want to borrow the book and then tap “borrow”.
from here, you’ll want to open the book with “kindle”, which will take you to the amazon website.
Make sure you’re signed in with the same account as your kindle app or e-reader, and then click “get book from library”.
Amazon will confirm that you have borrowed the book and it will appear on your Kindle devices and apps. If you’re already on the device where you want to read the book, tap “read now on the kindle app”.
This may all seem like a complex process, but it’s pretty easy once you’ve finished all the initial library searching and log in with your card. From now on, it’s just a matter of finding books and sending them to your kindle. Happy reading!
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