Toronto Public Library - Toronto Reference Library

Best library ever in Toronto. Nice ambiance with different spaces for writing, reading, work or just relax yourself.
They are a big variety of books so you can find whatever you need.
The staff is really kind and friendly and we can attend different free clubs.
I highly recommend this library.

The Toronto Reference Library has a wonderful distribution of space. There are a lot of different working areas to choose from. The lower levels tend to be crowded if you prefer to work or study in tranquility go to the upper levels of the building. Also, there are study pods if you want to work with another person for about 2 hours in complete privacy. You can reserve the pods with a week of anticipation.

This place is a true treasure. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable, the collection is extensive, and the architecture is impressive. It's a fantastic resource for learning and research. Highly recommend!

I've been coming here for 40 years. I'm always happy that Toronto has this resource.

Best library in Toronto, cozy and amazing for studying and the best part is the view inside. It feels like you are in a museum.

This library is exquisite. I went there to peruse their genealogy section and it was glorious.

It's wonderful, I love this library, it has 5 floors full of culture and wonders of the world. THANK YOU for existing

Cozy place with a pleasant environment to study or research. Ample amount of seating on all floors with a great selection of books to choose from.

Beautiful location. Rare book exhibitions. Huge room, looks like a movie. The tour is really worth it.

I discovered this lovely library 12 years ago for the first time and fell in love with it. After two years of a lockdown, I finally returned to it and fell in love with it all over again. Now it is even prettier since it underwent a renovation. There are so many cozy places where one can sit in peace and quiet and leisurely read, study, or breathe in the atmosphere of knowledge it inspires.

The library is great with a large collection of books and digital options. It is very clean with available facilities. The lighting and airflow is wonderful. My only concern is with some of the people using the library. They may not respect the rules of the entire library or some special areas like quite study areas.

This is a Great library and one of the best experiences you can have. The building itself is beautiful inside with great natural and artificial lighting that enhances your studying unlike the brutalist architecture of other libraries that just depress you. This library will ENERGIZE you and make you WANT to learn with its atmosphere! Besides that it has free internet, open study spaces and all the materials you will ever need right in downtown Toronto! What more could you ask for?

That's perfect place to immerse into reading with different type of locations to sit and read or have discussion with friends.

I get goosebumps because of ceiling height and at the same time appreciate the engineering of its designs

This is absolutely my most favorite library in Toronto. Here are my reasons:

Space: the architecture is undeniably gorgeous. The inside is well lit and I appreciate the greenery that’s implemented in the building. Plenty of places to sit. The washrooms are also extremely clean every time I go! Notes of improvement are functioning outlets and wifi though. Otherwise, I’m content.

Book selection: as you can tell, this library has a PLETHORA of books, films, CDs, and more to browse. I promise you, there is something for everyone here! The library also has sales and I was able to get a wonderful vegetarian cookbook for just a dollar.

Staff: I’ve only had pleasant experiences with the staff here. They have all been very kind to me and were able to answer all of my questions.

This library is a must-visit spot for book lovers or those that love to marvel at architecture!

I LOVE the reference library. I am partial to the filing cabinets on the fifth floor (I think). They are always fun to flip through. The motorized bookshelves can be scary at times but you'll get used to them (or you won't. They still haunt me at night). So much of our city's history is stored here— you can find old census reports and even City Hall meeting minutes, which are so interesting to read. They also have weddings here sometimes! It's always fun to see people dressed up to go to the library. To be honest, I've never gone here to actually do work or study. It's just too fun to look through all the books and records. What a pleasant place.

Best and biggest library in all of Toronto! This library also has exhibits, meeting rooms and an amazing and quiet environment perfect for studying!

P. S.
Definitely check out their book fair, they sell a whole variety of books of many genres for a dollar at most!

Huge library and lot of references, also opened the emergency exit door by accident looking for the beethoven hall, alarm went off. Security were very nice and calm though.

Yes huge library with many resources however it's not well-managed, there's no ESL conversation classes, no in-person reading groups, not enough book clubs, I believe there're many volunteers outside who want to teach in this library it wouldn't be so hard to organize such kind of courses for the community. The building is nice but you can manage it better.

A large space to read or get some work done. Balzac's coffee store near the front. The store has closed. The staff in the digital innovation hub are very helpful.

Horrible internet. Barely ever works. Extremely inconvenient. I wouldn't recommend working remotely from here or doing any study/research if it requires using the internet.

This place has everything, the printers work well and are a lot cheaper to use than any other printing store.

The architecture is astonishing. There are lots of cozy spots to find and read for hours. The quiet reading rooms have soft chairs and windows with beautiful views. Helpful staff and the most public thorough library in the city.

Beautiful!

With lots of space. There’s a coffe shop conveniently located on the inside.

Masjid is also nearby which is so convinient too!

The biggest public library in Toronto.
Different areas for different needs. Stay where "quiet study areas" if you want to really study.

Staff are polite and helpful. AGO and textile museum pass available.

Outstanding public space within a building. The vast and quiet environment is all yours to enjoy. Impressive music scores on 5F.

The largest public library has plenty of room to move around in with great study booths that remind me of that scene in James Bond's Skyfall.
If you can picture that great place to study
Community events which I've helped out with as well
Check it out!

So so so unique and beautiful I could just sit and admire the building for hours. Tons of space to study, wifi was cutting out a bit though but a must visit if you're in the city! This is architectural masterpiece!

Great library with plenty of seating and a wide range of booksWhatever you cannot find on shelves, the interlibrary loan system and borrowing/reservation system has you covered. This branch was in walking distance from me too. It also hosts plenty of great events. There are sound booths and more as well.

Huge space to study and read books. Came here to read a book for an assignment that my university did not have at their library

Has everything needed to make a perfect place to read and study. Enormous and impressive collection of titles, literature and even research journals - on any topic one can possibly imagine. The librarians are very friendly and always there to help. Been visiting here since almost 5 years now - And it doesn’t lose the charm. They also have a Balzac’s conveniently located inside which too makes for a good study spot. It’s the defining library for TPL system.

The best TPL library in the city!
This is so beautiful and resourceful. You can find anything here, really ANYTHING you can imagine be it movie, shows, maps or obviously any books.

A beautiful and thrilling building, a great library, very helpful staff at the Information desk and a nice cafe! I live in the UK and would love to see a modern library building of this quality and ambition in more cities.

It's a great place for study and work.
The wifi is fast and working so well for work.
But unfortunately, lately there are many of homeless and crazy people walking into the space which is make a bit uncomfortable.

The service of booking study room, on Sunday, in Toronto Reference Library, is excellent and the employees attention is kind and useful.

Hi, Can I use table and chair in library? Last week when I came they closed all sitting places except computer.

This public library is pretty amazing. They’ve got lots of study space and charger. I tested their Internet speed-about 6 Mbps, so steaming YouTube was fine, but 4K video won't do. I don’t need to study at Starbucks no more. I finally know where my taxes went.

Super cool place to visit I love how many floors there is. As someone from a small island this library amazed me.

Appalled at the behaviour here at the reference library. I have been coming here for years and never have I ever been so astonished at the rude behaviour from the security and staff. While in the private study room that mind you is only meant for one person, I was constantly harassed by the security to put on a mask while taking a sip out of my water. The mask was always put right back on I don't understand why they need to do that.

They harass you to wear your mask even if you're drinking, they will stand there and watch you drink. You better suffocate your self while you study at the Reference Library. Very uncomfortable experience. Security is just bored and looking for a fight.

WiFi strength is very weak on 3rd floor and not stable. Stops working every now and then. Everything takes a minute longer to load. Not good if you need stable internet to work on your projects

Always said, the design is what makes this place make me want to read harder than stevie wonder using brail.

Excellent place to visit. Amazing architecture. The place has a room in the Sherlock Holmes style which I enjoyed visiting. Recommended~

They say the the Toronto Public library system is Toronto's jewel and in my opinion the Reference Library is its diamond. If I cannot locate a book I need for my university History courses I can frequently find what I need at the Reference Library. The staff is knowledgeable, friendly, and go out of their way to meet the needs of their patrons.

It feels luxurious to have a space to walk into with all the potential that is there in this room. You can't help but find a book, a table, and be there for hours!

Super big library with a lot of selections, including music scores.near a lot of places to grab food or anything else

It's a beautiful building on very convenient location, great collection of books and audio, plenty of desks and computers and there is a little cafe attached. Staff are very helpful and friendly. Great place to read a book and clam for exams.

Rosedale, my branch, closed. It was great to have the staff at Metro Research fill the Gap. Patience required, but well rewarded.

This is a great library with a number of things going.

They have a 3D printer, they have a self-publishing press, they have a huge amount of computers and quiet study areas people can use.

The elevator is worth going to just to ride up and down if you have kids.

And there's a great comic shop inside.

This place is Huge. I absolutely love it.
Check TCAF, festival if you love comics and illustration.

Five star in prime location, sure thing. It is true that security needs to be effective; however, it is perhaps due for re-tuning: we’re dealing with humans from all walks of life after all.

The staff is really helpful and patient always ready to help.
The only problem i had is the use of this place by drug addicts.
Saw the guy injecting a needle outside the library and later saw him using the computer in one of the floor. Mostly security is on the ground floor but usually walk around on all the floor (will make sense if one security guard is on each floor) NEVER LEAVE YOUR STUFF UNATTENDED and ignore the homeless people as they will try to argue with you.

Nice library on Yonge Street with some architectural flair from the layout of the floors to the ceiling. Staff were friendly and helpful in explaining how to do various things from logging on to the computers, printing etc

We went on a Sunday afternoon and it was packed. Still, we got to do what we came for - print, and all before they closed at 5pm.

Some interesting book challenges, a cafe within the grounds, a book and gift store as well as a second hand bookstore.

Worth a visit.

This is an amazing resource, and a great place to go and learn. I’ve been going here since I was in Junior High to find hard to locate information. Definitely check it out.

Good for special books. Not what it once was and I avoid it just because of the location and the traffic going there.

I love going here more than I like going to my university's libraries. The atmosphere is very welcoming, there are lots of study spaces (huge tables that sit 4 people).

The place is nice and bright (bad for people using iPads for their work as it will be hard to see the screen), and it isn't dead quiet (which I don't like). There is always a distant sound of slight chatter, but nothing that is distracting.

I've been going here since grade 11, I am now in 2nd year uni.

To be honest with you, there are too many books here. There is just no way any human could read them all. I don’t entirely understand the appeal, but there are so many happy people there, you just can’t argue with it. Clearly they are doing a really good job.

Very good library. Huge building. Good staff and overall good customers. Reliable computers and great selection of books. Must see.

The Toronto Public (Reference) Library is a great Toronto resource. There is everything related to reading under the Sun available here: Rare Books/Collections; hundreds of Computers-Macs with audio and visual design Softwares, a 3D Printer; Readings by Authors; and a Newcomer Information Service. Also available: Adobe Photoshop Courses; a Canadian Literature Collection and various Writers' Groups.

Very dirty place, the tables and chairs are old, there are hardy no couches to just read, there was lots before, but now just wooden bench near windows? Make sure you remember your purell cause the keyboards are just NASTY! Washrooms are extremely small for a big building and who knows if they ever clean them.

Garbage library! Never go here! I felt like fighting some of disruptive and disrespectful people here! The staff don't want to help people find books! The security guards are no where to be found when they are needed! Fights accur on a regular. Bums with bags, computers abd carts steal things and shout at people quietly reading. I AM TIRED OF IT! The coffee shop is stinking up the place, minus the dirty and smelly infested washrooms, dirty desks, dirty computers and food waste lying around. Your things abd valuables are more likely to be stolen here than anywhere else. Worse there are people having sex in the book walls! GROSS! The homeless sitting doing nothing but annoying other people are not being delt with! They do illegal drugs, try to smoke and drink rum. I was shouted at by a racist one then almost attacked! They spew garbage everywhere and drink Alcohol all day! Something needs to be done about them! People here are vicious and animalistic! I am tired of complaining about bad behavior and nothing is done to stop it! What are the security abd staff doing? People are on illegal sites buying drugs, weapons and watching porn! I have even caught the fools masturbating to it! The reason I am complaining about this is because of the noise abd the sound! If the library was louder then it would be unnoticeable. But it is suprisingly big and somehow low volume or quiet! Racist bums with nothing to do all day but feed on tax money to buy drugs and beer should banned permently! If anyone wants to ask me questions or hate my review I can address them. I assure if you visited this library after reading what I said you will wish you never came here. Zero stats would be more appropriate and accurate for this library. I would not recommend this to anyone. Especially not a student! I hope my review passes to somebody. If not I assure you someone will just post every problem and more that I just said. Thank you Toronto filthy library. Smelliest library in Toronto. I take nothing I said back. Once anybody visits this library that never seams to change you will know the truth. I honestly have nothing against the criminals, drunks, homeless and thieves I this library but I really had to suppress my anger just to not fight some one or one of them in this library. I do not care about the homeless abd understand their situations and reasons but if they had stopped attacking people people and minding their own businesses maybe they would get bad comments from every in this library about them. Tear down this monstrosity! Please.

This library is amazing. Spacious, quiet, and a design that is a nice balance between modern and old-fashioned.

Awesome place to go， very good atmosphere here nice staff super helpful. I went there to print because I don’t have printer home. Very happy and satisfied to been there print also good place to study

The best library with a lot of computers. Very spacious and has a little stationary shop within the library. One can find a lot of books for research.