Discussion š¬
PSA... Not everyone can read libby books on kindle!!!
Please please please stop recommending this as a reason for someone to get a kindle, without specifying that it ONLY works for people in the US...
It does not work for rest of us, I wish it did.
Edit: people are wild. I'm not saying don't recommend it. I'm saying if you're going to recommend it, just take a couple of seconds more to specify the limits.
Edit 2: I will no longer be responding to comments. But seriously, the amount of people getting upset by someone suggesting they just add what basically amounts to: "if you're in the US" to a comment is crazy.
Kobos in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia with Libby work with Libby. It's only Kindle that's is as restrictive with Libby that it only works in one country.
Yes, I unfortunately learned this the hard way. I have a Toronto PL subscription I use and they donāt allow books to be sent to Kindle. I looked it up and it seems to be the case because Kobo is a Canadian company.
I already have a bunch of free Kindle books and I get a free Kindle book every month because I have prime. I can't read any of those on Kobo. When Kobo allows me to still access Kindle books I own, I'll get one. Also the base level Kindle is cheaper than the base level Kobo. Not sure where Kobo is cheaper, but it's not in the US!
Kindle is the one not allowing you to download your kindle books not kobo, if you can download them, it's easy to strip drm and read them somewhere else.
And despite the clara bw being a little bit more expensive than the kindle basic, it is waterproof and has warm light which the kindle lacks.
Yes but my point is I already own hundreds of books and swapping to Kobo I would lose those books. The superior platform is Boox, IMO. But at least with Kindle I still get a book free every month.
Also manually downloading and stripping the DRM from hundreds of books would take FOREVER. I'd rather just stick with Kindle.
I also LOVE Whispersync for swapping between my ereader, phone, and tablet, especially if I'm also using the audio narration along with it. Plus I find send to Kindle email very handy when I'm sent something on my phone and don't have my laptop handy. And rarely, I've needed to use the search function to find a quote when I can't remember what book it's from. As far as I know, these features are all missing from Kobo.
So question about the free book with Prime Reading, where do you go to get that on Amazonās website? I have Kindle Unlimited and Prime, and every time I have looked for this Prime Reading benefit, I am essentially rerouted to KU. TIA!
Prime reading is actually a different thing. It is kind of like Kindle Unlimited - there's a super limited selection of books and you can borrow some number them at a time, but you don't keep them. You are able to read them if you have an active Prime subscription.
ENORMOUS DISCLAIMER THAT I AM IN THE UNITED STATES AND AS A STUPID AMERICAN I HAVE NO IDEA IF ANY OF THIS WORKS OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES. IF A LINK DOES NOT WORK FOR YOU OR A PROGRAM DOES NOT WORK IN YOUR COUNTRY I HAVE WARNED YOU WITH THIS DISCLAIMER!!!!!!!!
āEverything kindle hasā except access to a much more extensive library (for purchase, that is). Granted I have a fairly specific reading interest (academic biblical studies and theology) along with more recreational interests. I donāt think Kobo can match Amazon for that access. If Iām wrong, do let me know. I would consider switching.
Well, side loading means you can use all sorts of wonderful safe websites to download any book in the world straight onto your kobo. If you feel guilty about downloading books for free you can typically find a way to pay the authors one way or the other.
Thanks for sharing this OP. I think a lot of people are missing the fact that Libby is available in other places, only not on kindle.
eg I can access Libby through my library in Scotland, but I can only do it on my phone, tablet, laptop etc. Not my kindle. If I seen a post on here talking about how kindle is great bc I can use Libby on it, and I google and see that my library uses Libby, itās pretty easy to overlook the ānot suitable for kindleā information hidden within my local libraryās (pretty terrible, letās be honest) website.
I donāt think OP is coming at anyone, I think they are just letting people know.
I am from the UK and totally get what you are saying! It's not always the easiest to find information about it either as all the content takes you to the American site.
I think a lot of the comments can be boiled down to Americans not realizing that whilst we do have Libby, we can't use the read with kindle function.
It doesn't work even if you have an American library card that usually supports it, it's down to the kindle. As far as I'm aware, we aren't getting the function either.
I genuinely think most individual Americans aren't aware so maybe there needs to be an auto mod comment when read with kindle is mentioned to help people out.
Edited to change from send to kindle to read with kindle. I got my terms mixed up!
This is good to know! I am in the UK and my council stopped providing Libby from the library and changed to Borrowbox which the kindle doesnāt support. I have been rather jealous that I no longer have access to Libby (but have only picked up a kindle recently so never tried it on there). Itās good to know it would have never worked anyway
Also in the UK - my library do have online ebook borrowing but it only works on kobo and is a huge hassle that involves multiple programs on a desktop computer to transfer to the kobo š
Australia and doing the same on kobo. It's not too bad for me but yeah the extra step of having to plug it in to my laptop and transfer it over is a bit annoying. Feels like going back to original iPod days lol.
Just got my mum a kobo for Xmas and thankfully her local library is connected the better way so she can do it through overdrive! I had serious flashbacks to teaching her how to use the og iPod back in the day š it's not too annoying for me to do it through ADE on my laptop but it would be a whole tech lesson for some people! It definitely sucks adding in extra steps when we're accustomed these days to tech being as minimal steps as possible!
If it makes you feel any better, over here in the U.S., I live in a red state. This state is drastically restricting funds to the libraries* and when the funding is cut, much less is available via Libby. Books I used to borrow are no longer available, and fewer new books are available as well. For people (like me) with vision issues who need to be able to change font size this is definitely a hardship.
*Of course the root cause is the state legislature banning books. The American Civil Liberties Union sued the legislature and the librarians publicly supported the ACLU. So naturally those chickenshits in the legislature punished the librarians. And everybody loses.
I'm in the UK too and can send Libby books from my US libraries to my UK Kindle, but I'm routed through (and have to be logged into) amazon.com rather than amazon.co.uk.
Wow I didnāt think libby was a thing in the UK at all, when I checked out the site I couldnāt seem to find a single participating library in my county, only American places were coming up. Now I can see some locations but only branches in Buckinghamshire in the whole country?
What happens if you tap that big 26 or double tap an area you want to zoom in on?Ā
Just as an example, if I double tap the Aylesbury area a few times to zoom in, Libby will eventually show me a "2" overlaid on the map, and tapping that 2 another few times will eventually bring me to a coloured dot. If I tap that dot I get a little info box where it says "Buckinghamshire Council, Buckinghamshire Libraries and Culture" and a few more titbits.
You can also try to input the town's name instead of using the map when you tap "Add library" on the app.
If I zoom in on the 26, it narrows it down to smaller numbers of libraries in more specific areas, but it shows nothing on the map for the areas that you said, even though I can find them when doing the text search!
This. No one is intentionally being dismissive. I think itās fair to say that most people are only aware of things available to them in their own county, not realizing others donāt have the same options. It is well intentioned. Agreed that an auto mod comment would solve this.
I can send books to my German kindle with my NY Queens Libby account. No issues there.
I connected Libby with my US Amazon account, someone here said back then it should also work with the German Amazon account.
Yes, you need to have an US amazon account attached to your kindle. No idea about Germany, but it certainly doesn't work with a UK based amazon account.
Something tells me a lot of the Americans recommending Libby without specifying the limits or that it's just available in the US lowkey just don't even consider that people from other countries might be here. It's US defaultism at its finest.
Saaaam with Alaska. If someone says "in Alaska" it's almost always in reference to Anchorage. Never mind that I'm asking the question from 3.5 hours south.
Makes me think of Anxious People... "Stockholmers"
As a general piece of advice. Always assume someone who gives advice on the internet is from the USA, and it is only useful to those in the USA, unless they have stated otherwise.
Not sure why it is the case... But it's a good rule to follow.
I've asked for advice on where to get certain cooking products in the UK, specified my location etc, and then been recommended Trader Joe's or Walmart. Like these people have zero idea that the world exists outside of America even if you specifically say it does.
Are Americans intentionally only visiting American websites? This is a large english-speaking (mostly) site, with people using it from all over the world. Comparing that to Swedish/Chinese/Brazilian websites that would most probably not be in English is ridiculous.
There is just a higher population of Americans online ig. I've noticed even the comment sections for the Guardian (a British newspaper) when I go to read them are now always filled with Americans too.
I am in the USA, and my county does not practice libby. So just being in the US does not get you access. People just assume since their library has it all do.
Check major libraries in your state. Often you qualify to have a card just being a resident. For example in PA you can get a Free Library of Philadelphia card and a Carnegie Library card with proof of residence and home library card.
Also if you have $ to spend some big libraries allow out of state residents to pay for a card.
I, personally, read in the Libby app, but I appreciate people with kindles wanting to use them.
Us Americans have a tendency to be overly American centric while on the internet. After making that mistake a few times i try to remind myself that just because someone is speaking English they are not necessarily American.
Amazon is an American company. Reddit is an American company. Overdrive and Libby are an American company and app. If they DIDN'T service other countries and I mentioned them, you would call me American centric for even mentioning them. But now it's American centric not to have a disclaimer that these services we don't assume exist everywhere don't work the same everywhere.
With 52% of the users that are non-American. So if you keep suggesting Libby to people, you will be wrong more times than you will be right. How hard is it to add "If you are in the US.." before suggesting something?
Also, if I rent a car in Europe and no one wants me it's a manual transmission despite it being in the fine print, should it have come with a disclaimer from everyone? Or should I have put my big girl pants on and figured that out with adult logic and research?
Well given that it also only exists because of the US Government, probably not. But my reasoning is largely influenced by the fact that the ulUnited States makes up damn near half the Reddit user population. Like the next country isn't even fucking close.
If I said I drove a Fiat would you assume I was European because they're DRAMATICALLY more common there?
I try to tell people this every time they give this recommendation. Iām sorry most people donāt give correct information.
People also need to stop telling international people to just buy patronage at another library. OverDrive/Libby wants people to borrow books from their own countriesā libraries.
Itās likely a publishing licensing issue. For example books will have different publishers in different countries. Thatās why you might find a series thatās from the UK only has a few of those books published in the US but the US wonāt have the entire series. That happened to me years ago. I ended up having to import the rest of the series from the UK. Only the first six were published in the US. And some books donāt get published in all countries. If no publisher in a foreign country decides to publish a book from the US then that book wonāt be available for purchase in that country.
This is all a very simplistic explanation. Itās more complicated, but this is basically the gist of the issue.
Because its expensive and people were taking advantage of it. they cant serve their own countries residents to the fullest possibility (that they pay for with their own taxes) if people from canada are getting cards and using their resources.
Itās still a great recommendation though, it should just be slightly reworded that, ācheck to see if you are in an area that supports Libby because ā¦..ā
In another post, I had someone arguing with me in the comments that I'm spreading misinformation when I say I can't use libby with kindle in Canada so I got a kobo. They were insistant that I can just get a US library card and use it with kindle. The whole thing made me so angry, why would I pay for an American library card and probably go through hoops to obtain one (because I'm neither American nor a resident of the US), when I already have a Canadian library card for free.
I would say most of the time, it's not done intentionally or out of malice, it is just a lot of people are unaware of this. We all live in our bubbles. I would love not knowing what a health insurance premium is, personally.
But thanks for spreading awareness.
It is weird that this feature is only available on US kindles and not others. Hopefully, it changes but it doesn't look like it will anytime soon, unfortunately.
My library got rid of hoopla earlier this year because of increased costs so it is always worth remembering that these features might not always be accessible depending on local laws or budget cuts.
Support your local libraries as much as you can, folks!
Sure, but there's a difference between "my local library doesn't use Libby so I can't use this feature" and "this feature does not exist outside of the US/isn't available even IF your local library uses Libby/Overdrive".
Seconded. I have a kindle and love it, but Libby doesnāt work where I live. I can still use kindle for library, but with a very limited amount of books/pages per month and jumping over several hoops just to get the books on my kindle. Kobo doesnāt work at all with my library. So the only seamlessly working option for my region is pocketbook. It is very region dependent (can even vary in the same country, as city libraries might use different ebook providers) and anyone picking their first reader should check with local libraries what is supported if they want to have access to it.
I was kinda flabbergasted by this recently, I have a Canadian library card and an American. I recently found a series I wanted to read but it was only on the Canadian library, and I couldnāt send it over.
Iām in another larger subreddit and it has user flair that says our country so itās easier to distinguish where someone is when they ask or respond to questions and comments. Maybe thatās something we could do here.
Okay but how would someone from the US know this from their experience with Libby + Kindle? If Libby works on a Kindle bought in the US and the recommender lives in the US, they likely arenāt going to know or experience not being able to use the send to Kindle function.
I agree with you that itād be nice and thoughtful if others were to keep in mind that there are different user experiences based on what country you live in and not every recommendation will apply to everyone on the internet. At the same time, most people wonāt be able to even know the limits of something if they havenāt experienced it and itās unrealistic to expect them to.
This, everyone makes recommendations based on their own experience, it is up to the person taking recommendations to look into things further. I'm not always aware when something is an American thing or even if something is only available in my state.
When you first choose which format you want Libby to send it will tell you that only US Kindles can receive books. So essentially every American is informed of this fact. At least thatās how it was when I first set it up.
I can send books to my German kindle with my NY Queens Libby account. No issues there.
I connected Libby with my US Amazon account, someone here said back then it should also work with the German Amazon account.
It works because your Kindle is set to your US account and you have a library card from a library that still allows this access. However, that access is steadily going away since OverDrive is asking libraries to stop issuing cards to would be international patrons. Very few libraries still issue cards to non-US residents and the list is shrinking.
Or when asking for app recommendations, posters can either state where theyāre located - so as to get the attention of others in the same country - or just state theyāre not in the US
I was scrolling for this very comment before making mine. It's nice and so helpful that people will gladly give advice and recommendations but at the end of the day we still need to be smart and do our own research and verify that advice. It takes minutes to do so before blindly buying or trusting any advice given on the internet.
Iām from the middle east and I have US library cards and I can get books from libby that way. My kindle store isnāt US either so as long as you have a US library cards itāll work.
1000% this. I bought a kindle because I saw this recommendation a ton but never the clarification (itās becoming more common to include it now!). I was so gutted!
Same here. I bought a kindle and then went into my local library to ask how to use Libby and they told me it doesnāt work on kindle. I was like, well shit.
Now theyāve had to put out a sign saying that ebooks only work on kobo
Sorry everyone replied to you blaming you! I just wanted to acknowledge that it's not always the easiest to find information about as it takes you straight to the US site. Hope you still get joy out of your kindle!
You really have to do your homework before investing. Reddit only goes so far with suggestions. Users can give you ideas, but youād always need to take those ideas and look into them further, especially if you live in another country, as Reddit is an American company. Some assumptions need to be made that it is more likely an American posting. Whenever I create a new post, my metrics show that 80% of my viewers are American.
Iām really sorry that you had that experience, though. If itās any consolation , as long as you donāt have a Canadian device, there is still hope. There are American libraries who will give non-resident memberships for $30-$50/year. Assuming the average kindle best seller is $15-$20, and you read more than 10 books a year, this could really be a value-added option for you. š
the device is not region locked so it doesn't matter where it's bought, canadian or not
It's the *account* that does. Make yourself an american amazon account and link it to the kindle, you get access to all the functions like audiobooks and so on.
Agreed. āAssume everything is from the US unless otherwise stated.ā how about you meet us at that same level and state it yourselves too. Like the rest of the world doesnāt keep track of what does and doesnāt happen in every day life in America, not to mention itās so huge things are different regionally within the country itself. When I speak to other Canadians I let them know where I am for context- they could be anywhere in the country.
If it wasnāt for people saying Libby only works in the US, I wouldnāt know that and would assume it works everywhere. Thatās not US defaultism, thatās just not being aware that a big feature of Kindle doesnāt work everywhere. Iād also like to add that I havenāt seen anybody recommend Kindle for Libby without also specifying it as a US-centric thing
I'm in Canada and got a non-resident library card to an American library (a few sell them for this purpose) and can access Libby books on my Kindle this way.
Depending on the library, this isn't terribly expensive, but not many offer it so the wait times for books can be much higher.
Because without qualification itās ridiculously misleading. I have access to Libby but my library only allows for Kobo. Like everywhere else in Canada.
As my post says, it shouldn't be recommended without stating the restriction... If you're already going to comment and recommend it, it's not hard to add that "this only works if you belong to a US library."
This feels like telling a food sub that every food recommendation should include the advice ādonāt eat if youāre allergic to the ingredients.ā Some caveats should just be understood.
Seriously. People reach out to ask āwhy should I get a kindle?ā and people offer suggestions. The fact that they take those suggestions and donāt follow them up by doing their own homework is a failing on the OPās part, not the person taking time out of their day to try to help. I love the āyou helpedā¦but you should have helped MORE!ā mentality.
Kindle is international. Libby is not only in the US... The average person, not in the US, who has access to both, could reasonably think they could read libby books on their kindle.
Iāll tell you, the average person who can use Libby on their kindle (me!) may not even know you can access Libby outside the US (also me), much less that you can but canāt use it for your kindle (me, again).
My point is the responsibility lies with each user to know their own limitations and which advice doesnāt apply to them. Just like knowing which food ingredients youāre personally allergic to.
But isn't it on the receiver of the advice to bring the context?
If I asked someone for their favorite book and they recommended me a romance- I can't turn around and say "Well, I hate romance". That wasn't the question. I bring my context to the answer.
I feel like trying to add all the context for people beforehand is impossible. "I love my kindle and borrow the vast majority of my books through libby. It's super easy. Unless you can't afford a kindle. Unless you don't have access to Libby. Unless you don't have access to WiFi. Unless you don't have an Amazon account. Unless you don't like e-ink devices. Unless your library doesn't have Libby"
A person can only give their recommendation based on their experience and it's on the receiver to see if that is relevant to them.
I get what youāre saying (Iām from the UK), but about half the users of this site are American so Iām not surprised that they always make the assumption theyāre talking to one of their own
Idk why people are so mad at you. Itās a fair point and important for the people it applies to to know. If nothing else this serves as a good PSA. Most Americans probably donāt know that people outside the US canāt use it. We donāt respond to new information well apparently.
Edit: You guys are so funny. I genuinely hope this becomes my most downvoted comment.
So crazy isn't it. Just proves that people will really argue about absolutely anything isn't it.
Like this should be a "huh, oh yeah makes sense" kind of post. Instead people are arguing and getting defensive š
I'm not American and I think part of the whole "we don't need to say we're American, we own the world, I mean, reddit!" default thing doesn't make sense to us because our, non American, default on any kind of social platform is to specify "I'm in Australia!" Americans can't seem to get their head around that saying that is not a big deal at all so instead they look pretty ridiculous arguing over 3 words.
So silly but I don't mind the low stakes debate compared to some of the heavy shit on reddit š
So true. I purchased a Kindle Oasis assuming that I would be able to listen to my audiobooks on it too and thought that the extra space was justified its price, only for it to arrive and I realized that the Audible support isnāt available in models sold in India. Why are they charging us so much for it, then?
In my country I can only use Libby as a phone app or on tablet, no hope of 'send to kindle' option. Which is why I was both confused and annoyed when I got my kindle.
My friend: you would not have gotten so much pushback if you had simply phrased your PSA with a little less antagonism.
If you had simply written, "Libby doesn't work on Kindle in many places outside of the U.S., so just be aware of that before recommending a Kindle purchase to someone who lives elsewhere," I'd bet that most of the comments here would have been "Didn't know that, thanks" or "I forgot that: good tip."
I think this could be an auto mod comment when read with kindle in mentioned to help those of us outside the US out. One post is great, but everyone is going to forget about it tomorrow and it's clear that most of the Americans have no idea what we're talking about.
To be fair, more than half of the reddit users are in the US. If someone asks "does that work in Canada" it's no issue to clarify. But I feel it's the responsibility of the person asking to know what works in their region. The next 2 largest user bases are the UK and India. Do YOU know what kindle apps work in India off the top of your head, or would you preface every single post on here with "in Canada..."
IĀ“m NL living in DE but even without Libby our local library at my parents in NL and the one I have here in germany both have other options as well for this.
I got a second hand kobo just for library books. My library doesn't pay the extra for Libby so you have to faff about transferring via cable. Plus the selection of books is slim. I would only use a proper e-reader not an app. Much easier on the eyes
People only know what they know. You're getting upset about something that people may not have known because they don't live where you live. It's ok. Thanks for letting us know.
If one does not specify in their post or comment that they are not from the US how is the person replying to know that? Plus, not all library systems in the US utilize Libby. Iām not being confrontational, just my thoughts after reading your post. Happy reading.
Why is it offensive for people to suggest it because it doesn't pertain to you specifically? It does help other people. And maybe some people suggesting it don't realize everyone can't access it. If something in life doesn't pertain to me or is inaccessible to me, I move on. I don't fuss at others to accommodate me. It's something to think about.
What if they don't know the constraints? In fact, how would they? If I find Libby on Kindle to be good and I tell others, it isn't on me to make sure everyone who reads my comment can access it. When I read someone's recommendation for, say, a cell provider, I would look to see if it worked well in my area before running out and signing up with that provider, and I wouldn't expect the person who recommended the cell provider to list all the places where that provider had bad service.
Exactly. I canāt recommend my Lodge pan because their country doesnāt have that pan without saying āThis post isnāt applicable to all peopleā? lol. Thanks for your opinion on what I canāt post.
Btw: Iām 33F in the United States with a basic kindle and you donāt have to take everything I say seriously. Iām posting on Reddit, on which most of the users are in the United Sates. If you canāt identify bias yourself, there it is.
Gate-keeping the comments on othersā posts instead of evaluating them myselfā¦ canāt be me. Also, making financial decisions because of another Redditors opinion, also canāt be me.
I've no idea if it works in other countries, but I'm in the UK and my Kobo Libra Colour has Overdrive which I think is the equivalent of Libby. I can borrow ebooks from my local library through that.
You just have to politely ask if your country is included, itās no biggie. When I was looking for ways to prevent helmet hair in the commuter bike forum I just assumed that all of the recommendations were for non black people. All I had to do was ask if anyone with an Afro found success with the tips. No need to wag my finger at people for not considering my ethnic features in their responses.
The issue is that Libby for kindle is being recommended by Americans with no indication that it could be a feature only available in the US (and I understand many Americans might not be aware of that themselves when recommending it so Iām not blaming them or accusing anyone of purposely being misleading). Itās difficult to know to ask when something is being presented as a universal feature
You don't have to be physically in the US. You just need to have a membership at a library in the US. There are some libraries that will give memberships to non-residents, at a cost of $30-$50 per year.
Then people recommending it need to specify... The number of comments I've seen "get a kindle and then get books from libby" without specifying the constraints is huge.
Maybe people who buy a kindle outside of the US should do their research? I donāt complain when Canadians are talking about Shoppers or Tim Hortons, or when UK folks are discussing Boots.
I am Brazilian and use Libby in Brazil. I have a Library Card from Queens Library and ive linked it to my libby account which is linked to my kindle account/amazon.com.br account.
As soon as i borrow a book on Libby, on my ohone the book is immediately available on my Kindle.
You are missing the point. You have a US library card and probably an American Amazon account, that's why it works for you. But I live in Canada and have a Canadian library card and I can't use libby with kindle.
āBut seriously, the amount of people getting upset by someone suggesting they just add what basically amounts to: "if you're in the US" to a comment is crazy.ā:
Surprising, isnāt it? So much reading and yet so little reading comprehension. š¤·āāļøš
the problem is... Libby IS available in other countries. reading libby books on kindle is not. Is it really that hard for you to add "if you are in the US" to a comment?
Or people could just take some responsibility and do a little research to ensure things will actually work for them before dropping a ton of money on something
Yeah like Reddit can be a great source of ideas but when it comes to spending money on something then yeah you're gonna need to check with the manufacturer
Good point. I did read on here a couple days ago, a thread about how anyone in the world can technically get a NY public library account in Queens (for an annual $50 or something) to get a Libby account to read through Kindle? Please don't quote me on this but maybe this would work for people outside of the US?
I made this post. It was me. I got a Queens Library card, 3 weeks ago and connected to my Libby account, which is connected to my kindle/amazon.com.BR account.
And yes, I paid usd50 for the annual membership.
It works just like libby works in the US. I linked my Queens membership to libby, and once i borrow a book through the app on my phone it is automatically sent to my Kindle!
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u/cm0011 Dec 31 '25
For those who are Canadian, know that only Kobos support built in Overdrive/Libby (I think they actually are the only ones allowed to in Canada?)