I used to visit this library often as an undergraduate student. Back then, it was called North York Reference Library, which was a part of North York City Centre. Likely due to the amalgamation in the late 90's, the Toronto Public Library couldn't have two reference libraries. The Toronto Reference Library retained its name. This one changed its name to North York Central Library. I don't recall when the North York City Centre subway station changed its name to North York Centre. I remember frequenting Coles and the food court back then. I should go back. I'm sure everything looks and is different. I like this library a lot. It's spacious. If you need a place to quietly read a book or study, there were plenty of tables and chairs to do it. It's still the case to this day. It's a popular place for students to visit, do research, and study. I like that there are lots of floors to spread out. There were seven when I was last there. This library went through major renovations back in 2017. Three floors were affected. This section was reopened a year later. These days, it has auditorium, a Braille writer, magnifiers, and wheelchair-accessible furniture. It also has wifi. I always liked the DVDs, CDs, and other media formats. This library had the best selection. I miss having a Toronto library card. Back then, I used to live in Toronto before I moved to Markham with my parents. I then studied in Toronto, so having a library card was free. I neither work nor live in Toronto. I refuse to shell out money for a Toronto library card. Instead, I'm content with my Markham, Mississauga, and Brampton ones. (43) read more

Went here to study for the first time and it is a very popular place. Many floors with a crazy amount of tables and chairs. I went there at around 11am and was happy to grab a table in by the windows. I stayed there till closing and must say that it is a good spot if you want to study in groups or individually. The single study booths are hard to grab as they are on a first come first serve basis. read more

Big library. I didn't want to carry around the DVDs with me so I returned at the closest location from where I'm going. It's cool they have the automatic check in machine so I know it's registered as returned. read more

North York Central Library - Automatic checkin machine. - Libraries Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

So this library is the best kept secret in North York, right? Not only is the collection huge, and well curated, the layout is fantastic. There are wonderful selections of graphic novels, there are stairs that are actually benches, that also happen to have plug sockets in them so you can hang out with the buddies on your computers, or phones, or whatever the tech de jour now. And all of that is nice. But what stands apart is the kids section. The kids section is larger than a number of other libraries all on its own. And the activities there would put the science center to shame. There are modular ramps and loops to set up to send ball whirling around. There are coloured light walls where you spin them to create different colours and designs. And, there are play zones with automobiles to wander around through. It's incredible, and I'm envious of those who call this their home library. But, it's right off of the subway, so there's no reason it can't be for everyone. read more

This is an excellent library that's well-stocked with books, DVDs & other items to borrow. Also, they have various events scheduled, from film screenings to interesting lectures. They also have various kinds of areas for studying. North York Central Library is an excellent community resource. read more

This is such a beautiful library! I organized an event here for work and everything was so easy. They provide tables and chairs in every room as part of the room rentals. The location is amazing--it's attached to a subway stop and a "mall" area with lots of cafes. Knocking off a star because there is no washroom on the main floor, which is a surprising accessibility concern. I organized an event for 30 high schoolers on the main floor while I am 8 months pregnant. For me, it was very exhausting having to go upstairs every time I had to pee. From the event organization perspective, having to send kids so far away to use the washroom was a little anxiety-inducing. read more

Beautiful library to study and read. 5 floors of reading spaces. With study rooms that you can book ahead of time. read more

North York Central Library - Library entrance - Libraries Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

When I walked by North York Central Library... I didn't realize how huge it is till I walked inside then looked up at floors full of stacks of books!! The foyer for sure is a sight to behold... with the skylights letting natural sunlight to filter through! This place is as busy as a mall... but I do feel like I am in one of the biggest bookstores browsing and flipping through all these magazines and books.. the good thing is I can stay as long as I like, never buy anything and no one is going to give me that look! Tons of outlets, tables, comfy seatings for me to park myself using free WIFI. Six Floors of reading materials and more... now this is one library that needs a floor directory! read more

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Definitely not my kind of library. It's noisy with kids playing & running. The floors and sections are divided into several floors, but two sections when you first walk in. The washrooms are hidden, but i do like that it's clean though. There's also digital innovation hub, eLearning Lab and a fabrication studio which is good. read more

Half of the library is still under renovation (anything above the 3rd floor). The first floor has a staircase going up to the second floor. People use this space to sit and study (reminds me of the Ryerson Student Center dt). However, as mentioned by other Yelpers, the first floor gets very loud with children screaming and running around. Seats are currently very limited on weekends and it is hard to find a study room available. Also some of the plugs in the existing study rooms on the first floor (teen area) do not work :(. To get up to the third floor, it's best to just take the elevator. Wifi is pretty good, even during busy times. I'm waiting for the top two floor's opening, which is likely to be early 2019 as confirmed by one librarian staff. Hopefully there are more studying spaces available. read more

Oh NYCL, we've had a long history together. This was the place that I would go to meet up with friends after school (In the private study rooms, that were windowed so teenagers couldn't use them as makeout rooms). When I was a little older, I would tell my parents that I was going to this library, then go somewhere scandalous, like the mall or the movie theatre. I was in the area with a friend, and he suggested we check it out again. He browsed the science fiction area and I went a bit nuts in the graphic novels section, pulling out two books I've never even heard of and taking them out (as was my old custom when I frequented the library.) Since I'm a dumb iPhone reader now, I don't carry my library card, but they were happy to use my driver's license to find my info and check out the books for me. When we were leaving, I noticed that they now have self check out scanners, like at the grocery store, and self-scan book returns as well. The future is now. We didn't check out more of the place (upstairs, etc.) since it was closing soon. After getting the books, we hung out in the food court in the building, resolving to hang out here next time we meet. Hopefully, this means a lot more book readin' in my future! read more

North York Central Library - Laser book return from the future. - Libraries Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Likes: spacious, love the first floor's new colourful furniture, relatively clean bathrooms, plenty of restaurants, snack stores and coffee shops nearby on study breaks, you can bring your beverage in the library, free wifi, relatively quiet, lots of power outlets. Dislikes: they frequently have announcements about watching your belongings or about certain events that take place at the library. They repeat themselves a couple of times, which can be distracting. Also, I don't understand why the librarians don't shut up when they see people studying quietly. It's so ironic that people are "considerate to their neighbour", but (and excuse my French) the F-ing LIBRARIAN can't read their own giant memo on the tables. read more

This library is pretty huge. There are multiple floors, comfy chairs, descent WiFi, and clean washrooms. There are few study rooms if you want to reserve one for group study sessions. It's really close to the food court in case you get hungry or need some coffee. Or you can walk to North York Centre for even more distractions! Parking is a headache here especially if you are trying to stay for the whole day. So take the bus / subway or just walk here. read more

Love this library. Well laid out and they have rooms where you can study, etc. Lots of computers available for folks. However ... and people don't hate me for saying this ... too many screaming kids in the morning. I thought libraries were supposed to be quiet places ... Good variety of science fiction and non-fiction. read more

I love, love, love this library. It's right off the subway line & has floors & floors of books, cd's, dvd's, etc. They have a great selection of multi-lingual materials as well. And of course the students love this place as it has tons of study space. It's been going through renovations, some of which are completed & looks really great. They've automated the book check out system, as well as the return system too. Wifi is free here but really slow! read more

This is where I borrowed my first books as a kid and became my favourite place to visit with my parents. I was overwhelmed by the amount of floors and how each floor covered entirely different topics. Great memories created here. read more

North York Public Library is one of the reasons I never want my parents to move. I love going back home and dropping by the libs. Four stories of books, microfilm, movies, magazines, and stuffs! How I love North York Public Library! They've got chairs to sit on, people are fairly friendly. There's a computer room where computers are mostly hogged up by kids and unemployed people. Those kids will probably one day be unemployed people as they don't go to school. I was a minor celebrity here as I was the first person to get North York's copy of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. My parents went to pick it up for me, and apparently a "crowd" of librarians gathered to see who got it first. They really didn't expect a fobby middle-aged Chinese couple, so my parents explained that their 20-year-old daughter was a huge loser and reserved it as soon as the reserve list opened up. read more

If you ever need a quiet place to study, this library has almost 7 floors of working desks for one to study, read, or do work. I used to frequent this area during my high school days to get tutored - the downstairs level is a quiet only area with individual cubicles. What I really like about this library is the one piano room where you can practice! I believe its $1 for an hour and it is basically a small room with a piano. Recently renovated so checkout is now automatic! read more

Easily accessible via North York station (TTC) I decided to sign up for a library card as I rallied up a group of coworkers after a morning chat of the library perks we were missing out on. Who doesn't want to save money borrowing rather than buy! Growing up I spent countless hours each week scouring the painfully quiet aisles of movies, magazines and well of course books. While I moved to Toronto last year I had yet to sign up for a card. **TIP: Did you know that if you are not a resident but work in Toronto you can also sign up for a card? My coworkers had no idea. Work field trip had us headed to the library. Who knew it would be so much fun?! Sign up quick and easy, present your ID with Toronto address or pay stub/letter of reference for those non TO peeps. Sign up quick and easy. I will have to actually take out my first item to review the library. Best of all it's FREE!! Hold list already started... read more

This branch is probably my favourite branch of the Toronto Public Library System. Mainly, because it's pretty much 6 floors of books, plus huge study hall in the basement. Currently the HUB is under renovations for the last few months. But I love coming here to browse through their cookbooks sections, which is on the 5th floor. I normally use this location to pick up my holds, since it is the closest one to my office, but I find their browsery desk people are often quite helpful, in the sense, that if I can't find a book in their catalogue, they are often willing to put in an order, if the book is popular enough and put me on the wait list for it at the same time. There is a ton of natural light to be found throughout the library, but also they have a huge sheet music collection, in addition to the sound recordings; which can be found on the 2nd fl. But with the addition of the self-checkout kisoks, you're never really in waiting in line to check out your books for very long, they usually have 6 going at a time, in addition a staff member or two are normally hanging around to help out, if you get stuck. Their catalogue is, also, extremely user-friendly. I love being able to browse through it online; and when I find books I want to borrow, I usually simply click on the title, then the listing will provide me with the synopsis of the book, in addition to all branches that may have a copy of the book (or how many copies the library (on whole) has on order). read more

I had forgotten how big this library is! Wonderful for those who want a little quiet time and use their study area. Make sure to go early. There are also a ton of free programs available. Ex: ESL, intro to internet, etc. Information is usually available at the help desk. I had forgotten how much stuff taxpayers pay for... Unfortunately, I still owe the library a book & likely a $100 fine from decades ago. So I won't be borrowing anything anytime soon. But will definitely be back to curl up in a chair to read a good book. read more

North York Central is not my local library by any means, but I did make the cross-town trek to check this behemoth out in all six floors of its glory. Reminiscent of Bloor's Toronto Reference Library in design, I'd say NYCL is the cozy younger sibling. Also, unlike the Reference Library, a lot more of the books are actually for circulation. Each floor is divided according to field of interest, with whole stacks devoted solely to business, and another level to science. The very top floor is also worth a gander with its impressive collection of microfilms. If you're looking to study, I can vouch for the pin-drop noise level of the upper floors. Plenty of natural lighting and seating, as well as power outlets. The occasional coat trees dotting the perimeter were well made use of during my February visit. Super convenient location for those commuting by TTC as it is in the same complex as North York Center Station. There is also a bustling food court if reading makes you peckish (I know it make me...but then again, I'm always up for a bite) and I believe food is allowed in the library's bottom floor study hall. Happy learning! read more

North York Central Library - Libraries Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Beautiful space in the back of the North York City Centre. Rooms to study and hold events. Plenty of computers you can use that are connected to the Internet. Not being a resident of North York of Toronto, I didn't have a library card I could use to unlock one of the computer. Not a problem, the lady at the front desk gave me a code that I could use to log in. Plenty of food options just outside the library, including a Starbucks and the Timmy's. It's located on the subway line North York City Centre doubling as subway pavilion. read more

I have a soft spot for this place. Growing up in North York, I would make regular trips here whenever I needed to do homework, peruse through the history aisles after swimming class, or just needed a home away from home. Fast-forward a couple of years and my move to Downtown Toronto, I've re-discovered how great this library was. As one of two main reference libraries in the city, North York Central has an excellent collection of reference materials that may be useful to urban planner or a budding genealogist. But unlike Toronto Reference Library, you can borrow books out of this library, unless marked otherwise. Another aspect I love about this library is its multilingual section. They have a good selection of books, music and movies for the various languages spoken in the city, like French, Cantonese, Russian, Persian, Korean, etc. I come here to pick up French books (or at least order from), since there are few, if any, French bookstores left in the city. I particularly found their free internet access to be a godsend. I couldn't check my personal email at work so I used my break times to stay connected to the outside world. All of their computers on each floors have free internet access, but check to see which terminal you pick. Some of them are "express" which allots you fifteen minutes, not useful when you're busy chatting away about your love life online. read more

Note: this review is specifically about the "Withdrawn Book Sale Section" in the downstairs entrance of North York Public Library. I can't buy another book maybe for another 3 years, but temptation was certainly aroused as I curiously eyed the sign: "Withdrawn Book Sale" "Withdrawn?" I didn't get it at first. Why would they sell withdrawn books? Maybe they should have named it "Old Book Sale"? But then again, they didn't all look very old. And then there were also videos... Anyhow, the price list goes: $1 - book $2 - video (mostly vhs) BIG BARGAINS!!! cash only. read more

North York Public Library is a palace of books on the subway line. I didn't know a thing about it until I was looking for a few volumes that were only available there. Did everyone else know about this but me? You go to North York Centre on the subway, walk upstairs, and there are five floors of books, including an amazing Canadian History/geneaology area on the fifth floor. I found staff very helpful when I was researching up there. It's my first real research in that field, and I was a bit lost. One librarian put me onto some supremely useful sources, including a searchable online archive I could access from home. On a different day, another librarian actually brought a favourite book over to me at the photocopier, because he wanted to share it with me, and he thought it might be useful. I mean, how's that for amazingly, wonderfully helpful? At TRL, I had to wait an hour to be told that they couldn't find the books I'd requested from the stacks, and the rest showed up on the wrong floor. At NYCentral, my requests showed up in minutes. The library itself looks a lot like the Toronto Reference Library downtown. It feels more closed-in because it's part of a mall, but the ring-shaped floors surrounding a central court and the carpeted staircases are the same. I don't know why they sequester the YA fiction and half of the graphic novels across the hall at the "teen zone," or whatever it's called. When I was there, the jukebox-filled hangout area had four asian businessmen chatting in it. They've also put a thousand or two novels on the main floor, calling them 'great reads' or something. Are they better reads than everything on the entire fiction floor? You got me. I understand that they're trying to make it accessible, but it seems weird, carving things up into upstairs fiction, downstairs fiction, teen fiction, etc. On the whole, a great library. I can't believe how much the TPL has to offer people, most of it for free. People should come use it more! read more

Library as good as it gets! Like the huge collection of books and DVDs. The library is currently under construction so it can be a bit of a mess. Now the entrance for the library has been relocated to the basement/concourse level. But the staff are helpful in navigating you to what you want. I find the noise level in the study area acceptable. If you find it too loud maybe try the upper floors, seats in the corner (with less noise usually) or book a study room. read more

Love this library! Perfect for everyone, whether you're a parent with kids, student or just a retired senior looking to past some time. This is the largest public library I've been too. I wish I discovered it earlier. If you are a student, they have individual quiet study rooms for you and up to 2 other people if you require a more quiet setting to study. Also helpful are the poweroutlets! The very bottem floor is the "study hall". This consists of rows and rows of tables just for studying. This library is super convienent. Located right by the North York Centre subway station. They are even open on sundays! Although I wish their hours were longer. read more

Great library with a wide selection of books and nice quiet space The staff is also quite friendly and accommodating as I had several questions for a thesis I was writing for my masters. I'll be back. read more

I am surprised this one missed my list I had been to North York Central alot so I have seen how massive it is. with 6 floor and main floor, it is pretty big and spacious. The collection is great, the reference books arent as good as the reference library but most book that are reference only happen to be at both and North York is usally better place to go and use it since there are less people there but it still has it fair share of traffic, As I stop in today, I learned that North York Centre is going through major renovations to it first and second floor as well as part of the other floors, collections have been moved around so probably a good idea to ask staff first they have a book before looking for it They still have 4 study rooms on each of 3-6th floor but you probably need to be early for those. there are still good space to study, the library still seem quiet, It still a functional library to use during the renovation, there are still plenty of computer to use as well read more

This library is modern, have beyond and above preparation for someone who is ready to learn. Plenty of chairs to sit around, 4 playgrounds for different part of the toys. The only thing is it is in downtown chicago. And it is crazy to find parking. read more

I love the North York Public Central Library, they have many floors of books, everything is well laid out. Perks: 1. Many Floors of books. 2. On the subway line, you do not have to go outside to get here from the Sudbway, it can be a little adventure to find your way to it without going outside, but if you know the area it is fairly easy. 3. They have rooms that they rent to different authors/speakers that hold different talks here, most of which are free. One of my favourite Personal Finance Authors Derek Foster had a talk here about a year and half ago that I went to attend, the room was nice, had comfortable chairs, the event was free and because of the design of the room it was easy to hear him even though I was sitting at the back and he had no microphone. read more

One of the larger public libraries in the GTA located on the subway line. If you need to buy anything, it's in close vicinity. Plenty of foodie places to go grab a snack or meal in between study breaks. Great selection of books and reference materials though I tend to chill in the magazine area most often... I find it gets quite crowded during the week when the students are in school, but barren otherwise when they're not trying to cram for their term tests or exams. read more

I have such wonderful memories of this library. It was one of the first places my folks would drop me off and let me explore on my own when I was around 10 or 11, and I discovered so much about the city, the country, the world, and myself by meeting people from all over and sharing my love of reading and books with them. read more

In terms of finding books, the selection here is quite thorough, as there are many floors divided into organized categories. However, if you are looking to get some studying done, this place is not for you. It is usually full of students, making it difficult to find a seat, let alone study. And don't even think about using the "study hall". It's loud, bustling, and not a place to get work done. read more

it's a library. if libraries can be star-ranked i'm giving it four stars. I think I got most of my literary satisfaction from here. Has many floors.. (5?), lots of sitting areas, people are kind of loud sometimes... if you REALLY gotta get stuff done, bring headphones. Staff are friendly here, helped me find stuff even when i almost gave up. I like it connects to the subway, so even when it's a blizzard outside I can still get my book on the way home. :) good stuff! read more