Libby vs. Epic!: The Ultimate Digital Reading Guide for Parents
Deciding between your local library's free digital shelves and the gamified subscription world of the leading reading app for kids.
If your kid is a reader — or you're trying to make them one — you've probably bumped into both Libby and Epic! at some point, and wondered which one is actually worth your time (and money). Short answer: they're solving different problems, and honestly, the best families use both — but how you use them matters a lot.
Libby is completely free with a library card and gives kids access to a massive catalog of real ebooks and audiobooks — it's the better long-term reading tool for most families. Epic! is a $9.99/month subscription with a more gamified, kid-friendly interface and a deeper catalog for younger readers (ages 2–12), making it worth the cost if you have early readers who need engagement hooks to get into books. If your kid is 8+ and already motivated to read, start with Libby — it's free and excellent. If you've got a reluctant 5-year-old who needs some sparkle to get interested, Epic! might be worth the subscription.
Libby is the app made by OverDrive — it's essentially the front door to your public library's digital collection. You log in with your library card, and boom: free ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines. No subscription. No upsells. Just your tax dollars finally doing something useful.
The catalog depends entirely on your library system, but most mid-to-large libraries have tens of thousands of titles. Wait times exist for popular books (just like physical holds), but kids' titles usually have shorter queues. The interface is clean and genuinely pleasant to use — it doesn't feel like a government website from 2009, which is a win.
Epic! is a dedicated kids' reading platform with over 40,000 books, audiobooks, read-to-me titles, learning videos, and quizzes. It's $9.99/month (or around $79.99/year) for home use, though teachers get it free — which is why your kid may have already used it at school.
The interface is designed for kids: colorful, gamified, with badges and reading streaks. It skews younger (the sweet spot is really ages 4–10), and the catalog leans heavily into early chapter books, picture books, and leveled readers. Think Dog Man, Captain Underpants, Magic Tree House — the stuff kids are actually begging to read.
Cost
This one isn't close. Libby is free. Epic! costs money. If budget is any consideration, Libby wins by default — and it's not a consolation prize, it's genuinely great.
That said, $9.99/month is about the cost of two coffee drinks, and if it gets your reluctant reader to sit down with a book for 20 minutes a day, that math works out fine.
Age Range & Catalog Fit
Epic! is built for the 4–10 crowd. The catalog is deep in that range — leveled readers, early chapter books, picture books with read-aloud features. For a kindergartner or first grader, Epic! often wins on pure engagement.
Libby has a broader range but requires a bit more navigation for young kids. The catalog for middle grade and YA is significantly better than Epic!'s — if your kid is reading Percy Jackson or Wings of Fire or The Hunger Games, Libby is where you want to be.
The Gamification Question
Epic! uses reading streaks, badges, and progress tracking to keep kids engaged. For some kids, this is the hook that makes reading click. For others — especially older or more intrinsically motivated readers — it can actually feel patronizing or distracting.
Libby has no gamification. It's just... books. Which is either refreshing or boring depending on your kid's temperament.
Audiobooks
Both platforms have audiobooks, but Libby's audiobook catalog is significantly larger and includes major publishers. If your kid is an audiobook kid (and audiobooks absolutely count as reading
), Libby is the better platform.
Here's something worth knowing: based on Screenwise community data, kids in this age range are averaging about 4 hours of screen time on weekdays and 5 hours on weekends. Only 30% of families actively manage bedtime device use — which means a lot of kids are on screens late, and not always doing something as worthwhile as reading.
Reading on a tablet — whether through Libby or Epic! — is screen time, but it's categorically different from passive video consumption. That said, 50% of kids in our community have unsupervised tablet access, which means the "just going to read for 20 minutes" session can easily drift into YouTube territory if there's no structure around it.
One practical move: if your kid reads on a tablet, keep the reading app in a dedicated "reading time" routine that's separate from free screen time. It doesn't have to be rigid — just intentional.
Speaking of which: how to build a screen time routine that actually works.
Go with Libby if:
- Your kid is 8+ and already reads independently
- You want audiobooks (lots of them)
- Budget matters
- Your kid reads middle grade, YA, or anything with a waitlist at the physical library
- You want to model "library culture" and the concept that books are a public good
Go with Epic! if:
- Your kid is 4–8 and needs engagement hooks to get into books
- You have an early reader who benefits from leveled reading features
- Your kid already uses it at school and is familiar with the interface
- You want read-aloud features for younger kids
- You're trying to build a reading habit from scratch and need the gamification to help
Use both if:
- You have multiple kids at different ages
- Your young reader loves Epic! but you want to gradually transition them to Libby as they get older
- You want Epic! for independent reading and Libby for family audiobook road trips
Epic!'s "Learning Videos" Are a Slippery Slope
Epic! isn't just books — it also has learning videos embedded in the platform. These are generally fine, but they can blur the line between "reading time" and "video time" in ways that are worth watching. If you're using Epic! specifically to build reading habits, it's worth checking in on whether your kid is actually reading or just watching videos with educational packaging.
Libby Requires a Library Card (Obviously, But Still)
If your kid doesn't have their own library card, getting them one is genuinely a worthwhile ritual. Most libraries will issue cards to kids of any age with a parent present. It's a small thing that carries real meaning — why getting your kid a library card still matters in 2026.
Both Apps Work on Tablets — Check Your Setup
Given that half of kids in the Screenwise community have unsupervised tablet access, it's worth making sure whichever app you set up is actually accessible without unlocking the whole device. Both Libby and Epic! can be set up in kid-friendly ways — how to set up a reading-only tablet for kids.
Reading apps are a great excuse to talk about books in a low-pressure way. Some prompts that actually work:
- "What's the weirdest book you've found on Epic! this week?"
- "Want to put a hold on [a book they've mentioned] on Libby together?"
- "If you could read any book in the world right now, what would it be?" (Then find it on one of these apps together — the act of searching is half the magic.)
If your kid is into specific series, check out best book series for kids who love Dog Man or what to read after Harry Potter.
Q: Is Epic! worth it if my kid already has a library card?
For kids under 8, probably yes — Epic!'s catalog for early readers and the read-aloud features are genuinely better than most library digital collections in that age range. For kids 8 and up who read independently, Libby alone is usually sufficient and free.
Q: Can my kid use Libby without a library card?
No — Libby requires a valid library card from a participating library system. The good news is that most public libraries are free to join, and many now offer instant digital cards. Find your library's digital card options.
Q: Does Epic! have audiobooks?
Yes, Epic! has audiobooks and "read-to-me" features where a narrator reads the book aloud while the text is highlighted. However, Libby's audiobook catalog is significantly larger and includes more major publisher titles.
Q: What age is Epic! appropriate for?
Epic! is designed for ages 2–12, with its sweet spot being roughly 4–10. The platform is fully kid-safe with no social features or user-generated content. For teens, the catalog gets thin quickly and Libby is the better option.
Q: Is Libby actually free? What's the catch?
Libby is genuinely free with a library card — no hidden fees, no premium tier, no ads. The "catch" is that popular titles have waitlists (just like physical books), and your catalog depends on what your local library system has licensed. Bigger library systems generally have better digital catalogs.
Libby is the long game — free, expansive, and built on the public good of libraries. Epic! is the engagement engine — worth the subscription for young or reluctant readers who need a little extra sparkle to get hooked on books.
If you're only picking one: Libby, unless your kid is under 8 and still building the reading habit. If you can swing both, use Epic! as the on-ramp and Libby as the highway.
Either way, the fact that you're thinking about this at all means your kid is way more likely to be a reader than average. That's the whole game.
Ask our chatbot which reading app is right for your kid's age and reading level