Libraries Break Digital Lending Records in 2025 with Over 820 Million Checkouts and Over 1 Billion Minutes Streamed
Libby, Sora, and Kanopy achieved new milestones as libraries, schools, and institutions worldwide expanded access to ebooks, audiobooks, digital magazines, and streaming video
CLEVELAND – January 21, 2026 – In 2025, libraries around the world continued to prove their essential role in connecting communities with stories, information, and entertainment, breaking new digital lending records in the process. As the need for flexible, on-demand access to books and media continued to grow, libraries expanded their digital collections to meet readers where they are, delivering record usage across ebooks, audiobooks, digital magazines, and streaming video.
Using the Libby and Sora apps, readers borrowed more than 820 million digital titles worldwide in 2025, marking a 10.9% year-over-year increase and reflecting sustained engagement across public libraries, schools, and institutions. At the same time, academic and public libraries offering streaming video through Kanopy reached new heights, with 29.9 million plays and over 1 billion minutes streamed, reinforcing libraries’ expanding role in digital learning and entertainment.
This growth translated into meaningful milestones for library systems and readers alike. For the first time, more than 200 library systems, consortia, and school libraries surpassed one million digital checkouts, signaling both the scale of digital adoption and the trust communities place in libraries to provide equitable, cost-free access to high-quality content.
2025 digital lending records from the Libby and Sora global network:
- Total digital checkouts from libraries and schools: 820.5 million (+10% YoY)
- Ebooks borrowed: 379.4 million (+3%)
- Audiobooks borrowed: 315.9 million (+13%)
- Magazines borrowed: 125.1 million (+31%)
- Comics borrowed: 55.7 million (+22%)
- Adult titles borrowed: 520.4 million (7%)
- Children and Young Adult titles borrowed: 174.6 million (+9%)
- Public library checkouts: 737.6 million (+9%)
- School checkouts: 63.4 million (+14%)
- Libby installs: 9.8 million (+3%)
- New Kanopy users: 3.6 million (+41%)
2025 streaming records from Kanopy:
- Plays: 29.9 million (+8%)
- Total minutes streamed: 1.05 billion (+10%)
Top Ten Ebooks by Digital Checkouts of 2025:
- The Women by Kristin Hannah
- The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins
- The Wedding People by Alison Espach
- Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
- Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
- Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
- The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
- A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
- Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
Top Ten Audiobooks by Digital Checkouts of 2025:
- Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
- The Women by Kristin Hannah
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
- The Crash by Freida McFadden
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
- The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
- The Wedding People by Alison Espach
- Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
- The Tenant by Freida McFadden
- The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
Top Ten Authors by Digital Checkouts of 2025:
- Jeff Kinney
- James Patterson
- Freida McFadden
- Sarah J. Maas
- Lincoln Peirce
- Rebecca Yarros
- Dav Pilkey
- Kristin Hannah
- David Baldacci
- Nora Roberts
Top 10 library systems circulating ebooks, audiobooks and digital magazines in 2025:
- Los Angeles Public Library
- Toronto Public Library
- National Library Board Singapore
- King County Library System
- Harris County Public Library
- Multnomah County Library
- New York Public Library
- San Diego County Library
- The Free Library of Philadelphia
- Seattle Public Library
Top 5 consortia circulating ebooks, audiobooks and digital magazines in 2025:
- MELSA: Twin Cities Metro eLibrary
- The Ohio Digital Library
- Wisconsin Public Library Consortium
- Indiana Digital Library
- Maryland’s Digital Library
Top digital-circulating library system by country in 2025:
- United States: Los Angeles Public Library
- Australia: South Australian Public Library Network
- Austria: Arbeiterkammer
- Canada: Toronto Public Library
- Denmark: eReolen Global
- Germany: Verbund der Öffentlichen Bibliotheken Berlins (VÖBB)
- New Zealand: Auckland Libraries
- Singapore: National Library Board Singapore
- Switzerland: Aubora OverDrive
- United Kingdom: The Libraries Consortium
18 library systems, consortia, and school libraries surpassing one million digital checkouts for the first time:
- Gwinnett County Public Library
- Prince George’s County Memorial Library System
- Gold Coast Libraries
- Akron-Summit County Public Library
- Montgomery County Library District Consortium
- Los Angeles Unified School District
- Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections
- Aubora OverDrive
- Pinellas Public Library Cooperative
- New Orleans Public Library
- Loudoun County Public Library
- Boobook
- Deschutes Public Library
- Central Arkansas Library System
- Plano Public Library System
- eReolen Global
- Boise Public Library
- CLAMS
Visit www.overdrive.com to learn more about the award-winning Libby, Sora, and Kanopy apps.
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About OverDrive
OverDrive is a mission-based company that supports libraries and schools. Named a Certified B Corp in 2017, OverDrive serves more than 87,000 libraries and schools in 115 countries with the industry’s largest digital catalog of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, video and other content. Award-winning apps and services include the Libby library reading app, the Sora student reading app, the Kanopy video streaming app, and TeachingBooks. Founded in 1986, OverDrive is based in Cleveland, Ohio USA. www.overdrive.com
Media Contact:
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