I've been coming here since high school, if not earlier. Have been using the TPL system since I was old enough to get a library card! One of my fave libraries around the area; it's definitely gotten an upgrade over the years. The 70s style of winding staircase, dim lighting and stacks makes me feel right at home. Majority of the collections here are reference material, hence the name though there is a section of the library you are able to take home. Computer use does require a library card. They've recently installed study pods on certain floors and you're able to reserve them to study, read or nap...I guess? Even on a Tuesday the library was hustling and bustling. There is lots of room for studying, reading or just lounging around with a good book in this library. There was a section of the library for the Toronto Comic Arts Festival and the recent addition of Balzac's Coffee makes it more enticing to come here. Will definitely be back. Hopefully I won't take such a long hiatus this time around. Having fun is definitely not hard when you've got a library card. read more

This is a really great library. The area is large with a lot of tables for studying. The main floor is usually full of students but the space is so large there is still room to navigate around. The upper areas are more quiet with a lot of seating. Makes me wish I was a student again! There is a small browsery section where you can often find very current books/ dvds/ CDs to borrow i.e., I have found "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, The Help, Fall of Giants, etc in their Best Bets (7 day - no renewals) section. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful. The Yorkville library is also right across the street if you are looking for more "browsery" type material. Great library! read more

The Toronto library system is amazing. Their website is incredibly easy and makes finding and ordering books a pleasure. 5 stars for the Toronto library website! The reference library does not "stack up" (pun intended), however. Minus 1 star - they have thousands of books in this library that you cannot check out! What a waste! I understand for reference and non-fiction books that it is important for these to always be in house as a resource for people working on papers, but fiction? Really? I can't check out a novel? That's frustrating. Minus star 2 - there is a security guard who sits at the desk of the library and insists on looking into your bag and seeing if you are stealing books. I sometimes go to this library because it is the nearest to work just to return a book. Sometimes when I am returning a book, I am also carrying with me ANOTHER library book, and the security guard requires me to show him the receipt from when I checked it out one week ago. As if. Now, I go to the Yorkville Library. Neither of these things is an issue there, which makes it way better than the reference library for me. read more

All the cool kids are doing it. Learning is sexy and books are cool. If only Justin Timberlake had a song about Bringing Books Back. It's one of the largest reference libraries in Canada. If you are doing some research, you'll most likely find what you need here. The staff is very helpful and able to assist with questions. Almost all the books here are only for in-library use. Some newer material can be found here that can't be found at other branches. There are five whole floors of learning. My favorite floor is the 3rd floor for Business and Technology. It's usually quiet and I spend most of my time here. If you aren't into books, there are computer stations. Free internet use, the computers are busy and the spots fill up quickly. Printing is easy as well and way cheaper than any of the print centers in the area. Photocopiers are easy to use, you just need to put money on your library card. The library is located downtown, so you are going to get a mix of patrons. Students, professionals, retirees, and angry homeless people. For some reason I always get a crazy person next to me. This morning was no exception. The guy next to me started angrily muttering things about hating animals as he perused boat websites. Probably looking for a way to dispose of a body. Anyways, go to the library... go read... and watch your purse. read more

I spent a bit of time here during my visit to Toronto mainly because I kept getting caught in the rain and needed a dependable retreat. Enter the Toronto Reference Library. Not only is this place warm and welcoming (they have water fountains and plants lining the lobby as you walk in), but they have the most extensive selection of reference books in all of Toronto. To add, they also have an entire information commons where people who have memberships (and even those who don't) can use their complimentary Internet. I was super impressed with this library - it's one of the nicest ones I've ever seen and again, it carries the most extensive selection of reference books that I have ever seen. The staff is friendly and helpful and the library is frequented by seniors, students and singles alike. read more

The library has great space (five floors!) for those that needed quiet solitude for their studies. First floor is good for group studies and you will see many international students that huddle together at the round tables. I usually study on the second or third floor as the noise level drops significantly when you get past the ground floor. Families with small children are very cognisant of the quietness that's present at the library. I have seen many times where the parents would sit with their children on the benches across from the ground floor's elevators. There was even a time where I saw three moms having a "baby-date" on those benches because they didn't want to disturb the quietness of the library. Don't expect the wi-fi here to be amazing. The connection becomes stronger when you are sitting either closer to the center of the building or closer to the ground floor. Other thing to keep in mind is the homeless people that came in here during the day since it is a public space. The washrooms on the first floor are the smelliest, although they do become progressively better as you go up the floors (yes, there are washrooms on each level). read more

If there was a battle between metropolitan libraries, Vancouver's grand coliseum would Ko TRL anyday. There I said it. Never been that enamoured with TRL for looks but then again the sweeping modern look of Vancouver's library has captured my heart. Aesthetics aside, TRL is a big expansive cavernous creature with tons of room and tables for reading, studying or writing. Plus one can never complain with free wireless hanging around and the folks there are very friendly and most everyone who frequents this place is mindful of privacy and noise levels. read more

Just a postscript to my previous review. I still love the TRL, and it is a wonderful institution - but it's a frikkin' labour of love getting things from the stacks. In list form: 1. Find I can request books from the stacks on computer. Oooh! This is easy. 2. Find out I can pick which floor they show up on. Oops, some of them are being sent to the wrong floor. Go in, seconds after I made the request, and update the request with the right floor. 3. Wait the suggested 15-20 minutes before looking at the hold shelves. 4. 40 minutes after I make the request, find some of them on the wrong floor. Where are the rest? 5. The lady at the general enquiry desk directs me to the holds people. After I get someone's attention, he promises to go look. 6. Half an hour later, find out the books have disappeared. 7. Make more requests on the computer; wait forty minutes. When the books don't arrive, go home tired. TRL, I love you, but you need to fix this. read more

Quietness can be found in this huge library, free wifi is there but really slow, lots of computers to use if you don't have your own, and tons of books & other media (movies, audio, etc.) as well as equipment to play the media in question on. So the environment isn't bad for studying, as long as you're willing to wait on the wireless internet connection. I wasn't patient enough, so I resorted to tethering (using the internet connection on my laptop via my smartphone). Any other Toronto library that I've ever been to (at least 5 of them), have had rather decent speeds on wifi. That is mostly-so my only complaint about this joint. For the most part, people are quiet. Every now and then you'll hear a cellphone ring or what-not, but it's nothing compared to any smaller Toronto library, where the noise levels are constant and rather loud. So all-in-all, for studying or working on whatever you might need ot work on, this library is pretty decent as long as you're OK with the slow wireless internet connection and some minor intermittent surrounding noises. read more

I'm so so so so so glad this exist in Toronto. The librarians are very kind and helpful. I like coming here to study on the fifth floor near the back. There's a wonderful view and more than enough daylight to illuminate the space. The interior architecture warrants a visit. The big open spaces, off white balconies and reddish rug resonates the beautiful old settling in well into the contemporary age. Long live the Toronto reference library read more

I love going here. In many ways, it exemplifies Toronto: big, anonymous, there's always a place for you and nobody bugs you. It does one better: free wifi!! It's easy to concentrate on your work with the nice murmuring in the background. You can eat your snacks on the first floor. Their free lecture series is decent, though they move it around among different halls on many different floors all the time, so you have to check. Lots of electrical sockets. It's so spacious, there is no smell. You can read magazines and books for hours, misplace all the stuff and not get yelled at. I hope to participate in their digital hub and other activities some time! read more

I'm a self-proclaimed nerd and I love books! I love coming to this Toronto Public Library branch! They always have great events on including lectures and classes for all ages and interests. I love roaming through the many levels of the library and I find it a great place to get work done, people watch, read, use their many resources including the Digital Innovation Hub. It's a great way to spend the day! read more

This library does carry the biggest collection of all Toronto libraries, it's in a central location in the city, and it has been helpful to my life on many occasions (mostly in high school). However, this library loses a star partially just on the faults of the Toronto Public Library system in general. You'd think that in a library that hold so many people and books on a daily basis, that they would update the library more often, and replace books that go lost or missing. But I've had so many experiences where I'll be at another library and will search for a book that is at the Reference Library, and upon arrival, will see that the book is nowhere to be found. My experiences with staff at the Library have not been good either -- while looking through newspaper microfilm, I had a problem with the machine, and received little to no help in fixing it. But, hey, if you are writing an essay and you don't go to U of T (therefore no access to Robarts), then TRL is a decent choice -- it's exponentially better than the Ryerson library, that's for sure. read more

First impression I really liked the library. Caution: if your looking for a QUIET place to read or study, the high up you go (5th floor) the better. I really like that their are plugs on top of every table (easy access for phone charging) and free wifi for research. One down side: as HUGH as this library is, why the HELL would you have 1 stole washrooms... just 1???? I'm not a female so I HOPE there are more stalls in the women's washroom. I decided to walk out and not use the washroom (to close for comfort, between the PUBLIC sink & the PUBLIC Stole. My home washroom is BIGGER. Dumb design on the washroom, but other than that, I enjoyed my time.. "I'll be back" read more

We are very lucky to have such a great reference library in Toronto Why? Because not only do they have digital media available on line, e-books and magazine subscriptions for your Galaxy Tablet and are keeping up with the times but because they also have a Digital Innovations Hub They have two 3D printers, a 3D scanner, and a variety of design software easy enough even for beginners to use. The cost is low but you need to take a free course No printing of guns, weapons or sexually explicit items will be allowed read more

The library is great! There's enough space to spread your stuff on the tables and you never worry about not finding an empty spot. This place is huge and the free internet is a big bonus. What I like even more about the library is the tiny coffee shop on the first floor. You can come there early and get some work done until the library opens in the morning. The only thing I don't like about it is that they make you open your backpack every time you exit the library despite having an electronic detector. read more

My favorite library ever! Even though it does not have all genre of books, such as children books, there is still a library close by that do have a good amount of books. I go here to work on my assignments sometimes and I book one of those glass rooms The ladies behind the counter are very nice and welcoming and it makes me want to come back and give the library another visit read more

The largest library and collection in system. The reference library is divided into 5 floor (could be 6, never venture past the 4th). The second floor is their science section and the third is their business section which where I usually spend most of my time. It's fairly quite at time but given this right at Bloor and Yonge which pretty much the centre of downtown, it does get fair share of homeless and crazy. This library has 3 security guard, it use to be 4 thou two of them are usually at the desk but I think usually the staff call down to desk for security so it easy to get a hold of them. Only thing I have an issue with is the Wi-Fi, someone it good and other it not, sometime it depend on location. And it cut off often This branch has many feature from the newpaper and spare computer room in basement, to coffee shop in lobby to big gallery like room for events on third floor which they hold book reading with authors that do draw alot of attention to social function and even coin shows. I think their most unique features I love is that they have an Arthur Conan Doyle Collection on the 4th and I still need to check it but also the Baldwin Collection of Canadiana on the 5th. read more

A modern library. Here you can find books in any language. Very comfortable reading rooms.

If you want to go to a big public library, this is the one. The Reference Library is huge and imposing from the outside, but they have a great selection of reference materials (obviously). Some of the rarer stuff in the TPL catalogue (like, say, old LPs) is only kept at the Reference Library. It's good for doing research, especially on local matters, and since it's not a lending library, what you're looking for won't have been checked out by someone else by the time you get there. It's spacious and serene inside, so it's a good place to peruse materials as well. The downside, of course, is that you can't take anything out, either. You can make photocopies (by getting them to put credit on your library card), but the price isn't very economical, so it helps to have a good idea of what you really need to take back with you. read more

Toronto Public Library - Toronto Reference Library - Libraries Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Seriously, this place is better than the internet. If you're doing research on anything, whether it be an essay for school, a project for work or just for your own interest, this place is amazing when it comes to hard facts about pretty much everything. And while I suppose you could say that about most libraries, I must emphasize that the TRL is the king of libraries. To me, this has always been the main downtown library. It's a 5 floored monster with books on most subjects. Many a time in my school going days I would find myself spending a day here just working on essays. The lower level has a big archive of old news papers, so if you're a master in the art of patience, you can go through the literally thousands of archived newspapers on those film strip viewing machines (the name of which currently escapes me...) In general, libraries are a place where you'll often get shushed. That is even truer in here. If you come to socialize, you'll probably get shushed 30 times in the first 30 seconds. Just a warning. read more

The library's nice when the wifi's working but it didn't work for me today. I'll probably still come here and give it the benefit of the doubt bc it's a really nice place to work and the wifi's worked all the other times I've been there. The most beautiful library I've been to in Toronto. read more

Based on architecture only, I would give it 3.5 stars. I mean, compared to NYC Public Library, the Toronto Reference Library is like a half-shrug. The reason why this place gets 2 stars are the ongoing (and present) construction. How can one read, study, or do anything with that constant banging? Shh!!! As for the patrons, many of the homeless people come to the first floor in the back and just plop down and take a 3 hour nap. I think this should not be allowed since this is a library, not a place for taking a doze. Come on Toronto Reference Library, clean up your act. Plus, there's a coffee place in the library, but come on, Balzacs? Stay away from this coffee bar and head to the Starbucks a few doors down for better coffee. Not to say that this place doesn't have it's positives, including some of the window views, the open concept feeling, and the study carrels. But there's a long way to go! Pro-tip: If you need the internet, stay clear of this place. Speed is slow and connection is shotty because so many users try to join the network that it gets congested. read more

The best library in Toronto ! 5 floors of anything you don't know ;) free education ? Nah just take selfies all day instead ;) don't forget to upload those bitches to the cloud ! ;) read more

I'm in awe of the Toronto Reference Library. For someone who loves books, seeing this many gathered in one beautiful building is thrilling (and so are the elevators....wee!). There are tons of tables to study at and you can call ahead to reserve group study rooms for 2 or more people (but these fill up fast...you need at least a few days' notice usually). Although there are computers you can use, they're often in high demand so it's better to bring your laptop if you have one. I'm anxious for the renovations to be finished because it's taking away from the awe-inspiring feeling of walking in and looking up through so many stories of books. I liked it as it was, but hopefully the reno will only make it better. An awesome place to come and learn about anything or get some serious school work done. read more

This place is huge. There are so many books and computers are always available. The wifi is fast and this is a good place for studying because there are literally large tables everywhere and everyone is quiet. Unlike the library near my home, there aren't little kids anywhere in sight. read more

Overall an excellent library, but not without its problems. Three major ones to be exact. Problem 1: the wireless internet is notoriously unreliable. The farther up the floors you go, the worse it gets--as if some wifi blackhole is keeping it all around the first floor information desk. I will often need to set up a Hotspot because I simply cannot load basic email. My 1996 AOL connection could do better. Problem 2: many, and I stress the word many, of the outlets on the study tables on the 2nd-5th floor don't work. If you're planning to study here, get ready to play outlet roulette. You won't be the only one. You'll see other players walking around, laptops in hand, trying their luck. The only place it seems to functions is in those awkard exhibit pods they use to display sad students. Problem 3: probably not a major problem but the sheer amount of homeless, loud, or obnoxious people can be startling. Despite what the signs would have you believe, there's no such thing as a quiet area. It just wouldn't be a day at Toronto Reference without hearing someone yelling across the building or two friends striking up a conversation amidst dulled readers. Other than that though, it can be quiet pleasant and has tons and tons of material on any conceivable subject. read more

I love this place. So very much. Firstly, it's really convenient to both my house and public transit - score. Second, it's HUGE and has every kind of reference material you could possibly be looking for in this city all in one place. Third, it's close to all kinds of coffee places and restaurant to keep me caffeinated and sustained enough to do my work without convincing myself that 'I need to go home' and stop studying (it's taken away the best excuse I've got!) Fourth, and this I only discovered recently, is that not only does it have ample seating, meeting rooms and study PODS (yes, pods.), but it has some seating built write into the window wells so that you can study/read/work while soaking up the sun, even in the winter. It makes me want to study every day (okay, maybe not that much). read more

I use to study a lot at the TRL . I was just there a couple of days ago and forgot why I liked the place so much. It is great for many reasons: 1. It had wireless internet 2. There was a lot of space 3. Had plugs to hook up your laptops 4. Had HUGE tables to spread out all my notes 5. since it was so huge, it was somewhat quiet b/c the noise couldn't really bounce off the walls. 6. There was greenery inside 7. The library was literally opened from morning until night (except weekends) so it gave me the chance to study as long as I wanted w/o being kicked out. 8. you can eat and study on the first floor The only things that annoyed me (but only a tad) was: 1. There are only a very limited # of plugs to hook up your laptop on the first floor so you have to get there early or be lucky that they're not taken. (I liked the 1st floor b/c you could eat while studying) 2. A lot of tutoring happens on the first floor so it gets a little loud. 3. Sometimes ppl smell.... What's really funny though is if you get to the TRL before it opens (they allow you to wait in the foyer), you see all these men of different ages lining up to the gates. They really look like a pack of bulls getting ready to charge. You can see them all starting to get antsy while they wait for security to give them the ok. And when security opens the gates, they all rush in like a stampede racing for the finish line. It's actually a little scary. You really have to move with the pack otherwise you'll get trampled. I don't suggest that this is something you have to experience in your lifetime but it's funny nonetheless. read more

i never spent any time studying at the reference library but what is clear is that there are hundreds of places to sit and work. everyone usually respects the silence needed to focus on ones tasks. every time ive been the computers seem to be tied up, but mainly ive been here for the performance section on the fifth floor. behind the counter they have requests written on a whiteboard and other items they just got in i think. i dont know if its librarians as a creed of people, as a group of people whove been trained to use the same expressions, but they all seem to be upset when ever im there. like their underwear keeps getting bunched up. like they have a co-worker who has bad gas and seems even proud of it. i dont know if i could say that i love any particular library because i think i have a tendency to fall asleep in them. its so intensely quiet. the grandness of staring down to the bottom floor and getting a peek at the others though, is exciting. its like a big gorge. i wonder what would happen if i stood on the top floor and screamed at the top of my lungs: ECHO! ECHO! ECHO! read more

This is my favourite Toronto public library to study at! Located conveniently at Bloor and Yonge, it's a close walk or commute from my downtown university campus. The library is quiet, spacious and beautiful to boot - the ideal place to get work done independently or with a peer. There's always places to study - full of large tables, individual desks, and study rooms. I love the aesthetic and the calm atmosphere; I can get so much work done. The librarians are very helpful and kind people. My favourite spot is the 4th or 5th floor by the scenic window view and natural lighting, or the glass study rooms. So glad I discovered it! read more

Beautiful library. The staff are nice (for the most part) and you can relax in the nice scenery. It's quiet and overall a very nice place to study. Its not hard to find a spot alone where there are no disturbances. Grab your tim Hortons and a wrap/blanket and you can study into the late hours. From what I can remember the hours here are pretty good and you can stay relatively late - which helps for cramming for exams (not recommended but sometimes necessary). lol read more

Gorgeous building, awesome selection of books and something about the energy inside is magical.

I was in awe when I stepped inside this library the first time. Was looking for a book for high school, and I've never seen such a huge selection of knowledge. Cool experience. read more

I've never seen such a nice library! The library is pretty amazing.i've been here so often to study. This place is huge and clean.everyone is so quite!! read more

Great place to study, with the best events of any library in the GTA. The washrooms aren't always clean though, and the staff can be quite loud when chatting amongst themselves. read more

Good: Huge selection of obscure books, magazines and general reading material. At least 5 floors to discover. Lots of computers to surf the web on most floors, nice quite spaces to study and do homework, and of course helpful library staff (for the most part) Bad: Well the occasional odd job aggressive (drunken?) individuals who come into the library and try to pick fights with other patrons and.. the security guards who seem to think they are cops but don't really do much but walk around and snoop on innocent patrons who are just surfing, reading or studying....... while these same security guards don't dare approach the above mentioned occasional odd job aggressive individuals (can you blame security though?? I mean who wants to really deal with potential syringe wielding crystal meth heads for a meager $12 an hour or so security "career") Conclusion: Okay library to go to once in a while to study or do homework if you don't have any other place to go. Its mostly peaceful and quite but like mentioned above in the "Bad" section you do get the random junky or out of their mind individuals messing with people in this library. Hey its the downtown core so its expected. Hopefully the security guards who treat regular law abiding patrons with suspicion can tackle the syringe wielding crystal meth heads if they ever mess with you or me!!! ^ Wishful thinking I know.. I know... read more

Great library - though I agree with some of the comments here regarding wifi connectivity. Definitely appreciate that it's free (though that's commonplace for a public library). However, it could be better. It's a very shaky at times. If they can get that sorted, I'd give them 5 stars - because this is a really nice place to get some work done or simply catch up on a bit of reading. read more

I used to love this library... Spent days studying here. Not to be offensive, but I felt very uncomfortable. It is full of homeless people, very disruptive. The security just seems defeated and don't do much to make this a positive educational environment. It was like a daytime shelter. I had to move 5 times. Won't be going back - for extended visits anyways. read more

Large, attractive branch of Toronto's public library system located in Toronto's upscale Yorkville neighborhood. With a massive renovation that started in 2011 and took over two years, the library looks amazing and is more spacious to accommodate more computer stations, a fountain and more learning centers. With the addition of a Balzac coffee shop, the library now has a place not only hipsters would love to congregate in. Make sure to have an active library card in order to access the computer work stations and also load your card for print and copy jobs at the info desk at front. read more