Kitchener Public Library

This is by far my favorite kpl branch, they have so many little desk nooks for studying, and I’m always much more productive here. The only real parking option is underground, but it is reasonably priced and free on Sundays.

A great library, lots of resources. Great place to spend some quiet time studying, reading, borrowing books and so many other material to use and programs offered. I love the rose coloured paper art display, beautiful work!?

It was great to have an early night, and be able to go to the KPL. Although we were lazy and just got some movies/ detectives series. Hoping relaxing time will be nice.

It's a public library, emphasis on the public, so every walk of life will be there at some point in time: kids, parents, working professionals, homeless, addicts, elderly, and mentally ill. It's a refuge from the elements. You have to put up with some uncomfortable realities, but the price is right.

Staff can be a bit slow to respond to ongoing repeated incidents of distribution in the reading area next to the cafe and main entrance of the KPL main branch location. Sometimes they wait too long to resolve an ongoing issue and restore the peaceful and quiet atmosphere that is essential in that location.

I've been to alot of library's, this one has probably been the best one I have ever visited. It's so clean, the cafe at the front is amazing, the coffee tastes great and the muffins are awesome! They have recording studios here and you can even rent instruments which is hard to find especially since the waterloo library's don't have anything close to this much stuff. Def a must visit

Clean, friendly, knowledgeable, helpful. Cafe pyrus mini shop located inside - mostly vegan

Central Library is beautiful and newly renovated.
The amount of services offered make it a wonderful spot for all.

Disgusted at the racism, colorism, Christofascism experienced by the staff, which, while standard for every Canadian workplace, is particularly repugnant for a public space funded for by taxpayers and intended for all.

I would suggest the white leadership resign and let an Indigenous or Black nonmale run the place, but that would merely cause that person to be ostacized, and once the quality of the space degrades due to the surrounding racism, colorism, Christofascism, whiteness will return to pretend to do a "better job".

Fix your pathetic, delusional disappointment, Canada.

We usually go to the Grand River Branch, but the Central Branch has become our summer spot! We visit for kids programs every week and to update our borrowed books.
There is a Café Pyrus within the library that has great vegan and gluten-free treats.
In the kids area, there is a weekly scavenger hunt. If your child completes the scavenger hunt, they get a free swimming pass to a City of Kitchener pool!

Staff is super friendly. My kids love the extra toys they have there for them to play with. It's a great atmosphere. Absolutely love going there.

The KPL is such a wonderful bastion of civility, intelligence and engagement. Furthermore they continue to make a great photocopier available to the public. I, for one, am indebted to them for that.

I love this library. I love all the services, the great books, the variety of programs they offer.

Great place to take the kids, they enjoy it so much. I have also seen a movie in the basement which is pretty great.

This place isn’t as public as they say it is I chose the kpl to shoot some photos to use for my program since it’s a public place, I’m in college and they didn’t let me shoot even though I had a model they couldnt make any exceptions for a student trying to pass college.

One of the best public spaces I’ve seen in Canada. Top of the line offering including musical instruments, video games, 3d printers, and even a recording booth. The main hall is beautiful and an amazing place to work.

Great library with lots of resources and space for working. My only complaint is the water at the fountains tastes funky.

I love how big this location is, it has plenty of space to sit and read or study. Extremely happy that there is a little coffee shop located inside of the library as well!

I have found that the main branch has greatly reduced the number of paperbacks available. Not sure why. Just an observation.

I am extremely disappointed with the librarians at this site. They used swear words at young children and are disrespectful to the public. Truly a disappointment and am ashamed to have experienced that.

Nice and conducive place to study. They have books, DVDs, and online resources for exam preps. Also the staff are very nice and helpful.there is free parking nearby from 6pm!

Great quiet place to study, read. There's ton of resources available to take home.
The staff is really kind and helpful.
There's also many activities aside from just reading.
A truly remarkable place

An excellent place. I always go there with my almost 3 years old son. He loves it there. They have lots of toys and books for kids in a separate kids zone.
The library is very nice to see. It's huge and wide open with tons of books for passionate readers.
Only problem is no free parking spot, you have to pay for the underground parking.

THE BEST LIBRARY IN CANADA! There are so many resources and events. I love that you can borrow more than books here, like music instruments, MacBooks, skates, bike locks, wifi sticks… and they have 3d printers, a movie theatre, an art gallery, ample meeting rooms, an outdoor courtyard, and even recording studios! They just keep improving each year with thoughtful new additions. Also the friendliest staff. Love how they contribute to the KW community.

Beautiful public library. Very open, great programming. Love this location with musical instrument rentals, parks passes, and music studio. I especially love enjoying a cappuccino on Saturday mornings at the little café near the lobby.

Great customer service.staff was very helpful.good selection of books, games, etc.would recommend this library.

This is a great modern library. Carries an excellent collection of books and has lots of natural lighting-great for casual browsing or an afternoon read. Located in downtown Kitchener with lots of see or eat within walking distance.

Great selection of books and movies. I requested a few good books from the library online and this was ready to go in a few days. It is a nice location to get some good books

Cafe is starting back up, things starting to get back with some changes at our KPL Queen St branch

Great library and location. I enjoy their programs and activities. I am very saddened that one of the staff moved to the poineer park location. She was so resourceful for fun activities and crafts to do with my little man. I miss coming in and doing in person programs and activities but a lot has changed everywhere because of covud 19. I really hope that we get the programs up and going again in time. I also enjoy the Cafe and music playing. I enjoyed coming for curb and carry.

A great place to get a book or cd or get some videos use a computer very friendly people will help u out as well

Love KPL! A community hub where we can always find answers! Everyone here is so friendly and always available to help! Kids love being here too

Great library, my family and I are new to the region and were given fantastic service by both the man and woman upstairs as well as by the man in the teens section of the library

KPL is very innovative with new services offered to residents for free. 3D printing and musical instrument lending immediately comes to mind. Also love the bike parking in front and a more secure indoor one at the basement parking area.

Always very nice here. I had lost my card and had some late fees that I didn’t even know about but they helped me through it entirely and even let me get more books than the limit one time. Great place and people

I went today library to get in you card cuz I lost one and they were so rude to me like they were like you need your ID and I'm new to it bad service not friendly. Hopefully they improvement.

Great as long as you aren't using computers. I spent an hour typing up my essay for school and then I couldnt save or upload it onto my USB stick because the computer had weird privacy setting saying that it couldn't connect to any memory devices without a staff password. I couldnt find any staff members around and while I was looking for someone to help me, my computer session timed out and I lost all my work. I will NEVER try to use their computers again because it's not worth the stress.

I think they're doing a magnificent job with their directions on covid-19 and keeping people safe and doing a great job as usual. This is my favourite Library throughout the region as it's always well kept

Amazing people, amazing service, amazing library.

Everyone was so wonderful and helpful even during these trying times. I love this library

Their online services are so freaking helpful too! Reserved my book and went right in and picked it up, no fuss!

Since getting a free membership at KPL, I have been amazed at the different services it provides. For a city of this size, the variety of things on offer is incredible.

I enjoy using the 3D printers, and have seen a range of people from children to older adults make use of them. They take some time to print things, as all 3D printers do, but there are other things to take up your time while you wait.

My first experience with a Virtual Reality headset was at KPL- it took fruit ninja to another level! It made for a fascinating experience.

The selection of books and movies on offer is good for the size of the location, and their partnerships with other libraries mean they can order in requested books. (I'm not sure if this is still offered, but they can direct you to the right place, at any rate)

The staff have always been pleasant and knowledgeable, and I would recommend it for anyone seeking to improve their english skills.

I often go to this library but usually reserve books so I can go in and out in 15 minutes so don't have to pay for parking at the main branch. I will be glad when they are open again. Staff at every branch are great.

I love the KPL! Lots of books, very helpful staff. I love that if you need to rent a laptop, you can and find a quiet area or study room to work on your school assignments/essays. You can use any of their computers. Returns are super easy now. I really love that they have a kids section, full of toys, books and even the possibility to rent a tablet for your kids. The kids area looks cleaned and maintained daily, there are even family washrooms for family convenience! If you haven't been there to check out the children's section you must!

I used to love going here all the time. The library is beautiful and the staff are so helpful. But recently, the library just didn't feel safe. I smelled weed in the bathroom and near the study rooms. I saw a guy with a cigarette (?) in his mouth. There were guys who were acting weird and made me feel uncomfortable leaving my laptop plugged in while I use the bathroom. There was also this guy who was just shouting angrily for no reason. I even saw a guy getting arrested! I wish that they could add security cameras or have roving security people to make the library feel safe again. I just think that the library should be a safe space for people who want to study or read books.

I used to love this library and I went here all the time. But this winter, there has been some sketchy people hanging around the library and I even smelled weed. I dont think it's still a safe place to hang out.

This has been my go-to place for borrowing books, job searching, watching movies, and learning new things since I arrived in the Region in November 2013. The staff is amazing and the general layout of the place is bright, well-designed, and open.

If I had one criticism, a minor one, it would be security patrols. KPL has done some improvements in dealing with troublemakers since August. I realize there's no perfect one-size-fits-all solution. It's a tough balancing act: you want everyone to feel welcome, especially the most vulnerable members of society, but sometimes said vulnerable members of society have inner demons to deal with.

Clean and quiet place. Lots of books and in different languages available. Children corner and coffee bar also available

Overall good quiet place to read and study. Don't leave your items out, there are a lot of people who come to the library specifically to steal people's stuff. And there are no cameras there so they get away with it.

Love the set up. Easier to find and check out books. Took out Halloween themed books, then caught the silver horror movie downstairs. Good time. Speakers made my ears ring though.

I like this place because of their unique stuff and positive atmosphere. The seats were comfortable and all the stuff was well placed. I visited here several times to read the stuff i need and i was happy with the experience. Must recommended place

A great Library, close to the town center with a decent book, magazine and newspaper collection. They also have an eLibrary service with a wide collection of ebooks.
A nice pleasant small coffee stand with an adequate options of pastries etc, and ofcourse coffee and tea.
The building itself offers lots of natural light and open spaces, large windows with a pleasant view of residential streets, and a second floor that is somewhat more quiet.

Beyond amazing, everything you can think of, friendly and understanding staff. A pillar of our community.

Could have a bigger comic section is all

The library was awesome and the atmosphere was calm and positive. Perfect place for reader.i like the way they displayed the book and maintained as well. Good job guys carry on!

An amazing place for studying and meeting with people! Great stuff and quality of the working space. I'll leave a 4 just because the Cafe on the 1st floor is a little overpriced and the AC in summer works too well - can be cold at times. Other than that - the best place to study in DT Kitchener.

I attended the "When Passions Collide" art exhibit on July 4. IT WAS FANTASTIC! THE PICTURES WERE HEART WARMING! Well presented and I met the artist, Jacqueline and her service dog. Simply a lovely person doing what comes easy to her in helping everyone learn about service dogs and the real need for them. Well done, Ms. Gori and the Kitcherner Public Library! Always educating!

A nice, quiet library to work or study. The cafe on the main floor is a welcome addition and live music is an added benefit. I usually come to this library to clear my head.

Great kids programs, many innovative products and areas to explore for all ages. Never crowded, multi levelled, private spaces and so much to research and look at. Go there now! Public Libraries Rock!

Beautifully renovated with plenty of seating and a full coffee shop. Excellent online reservation service and self checkout means you can be in and out in minutes. Also offers additional services like loaning instruments and 3D printer access. Lack of free parking is always an annoyance, but there are a couple of 15 mins free spots.

What an amazing place to be- I went there because I had to print a paper quite urgent and I didn’t have a library card as I moved recently here. The lady their was so cooperative, not only she let me print the paper but I didn’t have $ 0.30 because I thought I can pay through debit. That lady paid for me I guess because I got the print.so thankful to her and everybody who works there.

Extremely friendly, and the design and technology is amazing. When I visited for the first time, I was amazed by the friendly staff and the bright interior. There are things galore to do here- 3d printing, VR, computers, public events, and so much more. I couldn't even get through half of the things available in 2 hours! Very proud to have this amazing library in my city.

This is my favorite spot in the whole city. Kpl has the perfect vibe for a reader and writer that I am. Whether I am here to pick a couple of books, research something or just drop in for an entire day to find a cozy spot and feel creative it always works. Their collection of books is awesome and they also host and organise great events. Checking books out or returning them is a breeze with self check out kiosk and the wonderful staff who are always happy to help. They have a lot of activities for kids as well.

Nice atmosphere and amazing programs. You can borrow more than just books as well.friendly and warm staff also.

Terrible because they dont have security camera on 1st floor. There are thieves in the library and they can get away easily because there are so many entrances and exits. They even have had someone doing drugs there. Crazy!

Good place to study and to drink a coffee. Many workshops are also offered as well as english conversation circles. My wife enjoyed a lot the women conversation circles. The also offer consultant to create resumés. I recommend this place for families including children since there are many activities for the little there.

Ebooks are riddled with DRM and are overly complicated to get working with devices I wish to use. If you have to explain your user interface it's a bad one.

This place is paid for with Tax dollars and they're overtly opposed to community projects where you can provide free education to members of the community. The staff at the front desk were polite but when it came down to speaking to Gale about a space to do a talk she was very rude.

Gale cut me off mid sentence and apologized and despite not being forgiven for interrupting she kept on going. I wasn't even finished my thought and repeatedly she would cut me off and be rude with her response.

It's incredible how hostile people can be these days, if you hate your job that much make room for someone who isn't miserable so they can actually work on helping the community not making people regret even reaching out.

After this experience I really don't feel badly that Amazon is choking institutions like this out of existence.

They offer a lot of free services to the public. They're willing to help out if you wish for them to assist you. It's a very chilled out place and I spent many times here just using the free WiFi, reading books or simply taking advantage of the free resources they have for us to use. Highly recommended.

So many crack heads. Not a good place to take the family in the evening. Stay away! Total anarchy! Feel sorry for the staff.