guide to uc berkeley's libraries

[May 16, 2025] done.
[December 26, 2024] 14/21 libraries visited.
[July 8, 2024] 12/21 libraries visited. my life is so boring lol

um… why?

One of my favorite aspects about UC Berkeley that I take for granted is the number of libraries on campus. It shocked me when I found out that most colleges have only a couple of libraries. If you met me in college, you probably associate rotting in libraries with me since I probably go to a library at least once a day. Surprisingly enough, I never really went to the library to get work done prior to college (which in hindight also makes sense since the libraries were a bit further away from my house and I had no mode of transportation).

I enjoy working in libraries because I’m able to focus in a location where others are working as well. I call this “peer pressure”, where knowing the presence of others hard at work motivates me to be productive as well. Additionally, my apartment is further away from campus so it’s unideal for me to go back and forth from different locations when working, hence why I just go to a library.

As such, my goal is to work in all of the accessible libraries at UC Berkeley by the time I graduate and to provide my opinion on all of them for anyone interested. The number of libraries vary but according to this article, there are 21 libraries (though not all are accessible for undergraduate students). I’ll be ranking them by the criteria below with a scale from 1 (worst) to 5 (best) with additional comments underneath (ex: needing to show Cal-ID). It’s difficult to rank which libraries I like best so I’ll notate my preferences on which ones to go to for certain needs.

Ability to eat
Ability to find an outlet
Ability to find a seat
Crowdedness
Noise level
Accessibility (duration of being open)

Art History/Classics Library

Eat: False
Outlets: 3/5
- A few at one of the entrances
Seating: 3/5
- Maybe 4 seats at one of the entrances
Crowdedness: 5/5
Noise: 4/5
Accessibility: 1/5
- Extremely hidden library, I think I got lost twice trying to find it
Comments
- This library is for graduate art students so undergrads aren’t able to book any rooms. In general though, it’s still a very small library

Bancroft Library

Eat: False
- If you’re quiet enough and there aren’t as many ppl, yes
Outlets: 3/5
- Desks usually have one
Seating: 3/5
- Generally spots available
Crowdedness: 2.5/5
- Tends to have tourists to view the architecture of this and Doe Library
- Busy during exam season
Noise: 3.5/5
- Large and tall building so it’s kind of echoey but people are quiet
Accessibility: 4/5
- Opens early and closes around 9 PM throughout weekdays and weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Kind of confusing to first navigate since it’s connected to Doe Library, Main Stacks, and Moffitt
- Beautiful architecture

Berkeley Law Library

Eat: False
- Drinks with a lid are allowed but no actual food
Outlets: 4/5
- At basically every table
Seating: 3/5
- Lots of tables
Crowdedness: 3/5
- Not too sure since I’ve only been here once but since you can only enter if you’re a Berkeley Law student, I assume it’s not crowded at all
Noise: 4/5
- Graduate students are mature
Accessibility: 2/5
- With the restricted access, it’s not accessible to all students
- Also on the highest floor which is a bit of a trek from the front entrance
Comments
- Solid and serene library
- Reminds me of a modern Mainstacks with more natural lighting but sadly only law graduate students can enter

Bioscience, Natural Resources & Public Health (VLSB)

🏆 Best substitute for the more popular libraries during exam season

Eat: False
- Wouldn’t recommend unless in a cubicle
Outlets: 2/5
- Hard to find unless at a cubicle or one of the main desks
Seating: 4/5
- Large library, lots of seats
Crowdedness: 3/5
- Although large, it’s near one of the edges of campus so less traffic than the libraries at the center
- Can be busy during exam season
- One of the bigger libraries so there tends to be people throughout the day and visitors throughout VLSB because of cool science artifacts/posters scattered throughout the building (like a dinosaur skeleton outside the library entrance)
Noise: 2/5
Accessibility: 4/5
- Opens early and closes around 9-10 PM throughout weekdays and weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Somewhat difficult to navigate through initially
- Lots of levels

Business (Haas)

Eat: False
- Easy to hide and eat
Outlets: 3/5
- Generally available at tables
Seating: 4/5
- Large library, lots of seating
Crowdedness: 2.5/5
- Haas is at one of the edges/corners of campus that people don’t want to trek to so typically only Haas students use this library
- Can be busy during exam season
Noise: 2/5
- Variable levels of loudness depending on the location
Accessibility: 4/5
- Opens early and closes around 10 PM throughout weekdays and weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Have seen a couple of unharmful homeless people here throughout the day just sitting there
- The Haas buildings are more “modern” than the other areas on campus but the library looks kind of old
- Sometimes it’s a little warm/stuffy in there?
- Bookable rooms are pretty spacious but there was a really bad ant problem the last time I was there

Chemistry, Astronomy & Physics

Eat: True
- Doable depending on location
Outlets: 3/5
- Available at tables and desks, can even borrow power banks
Seating: 3/5
- 2 floors, a good amount of seating throughout both
Crowdedness: 3/5
- Not as popular library
Noise: 2.5/5
- Louder on the first floor
Accessibility: 3/5
- Closes semi-early (8 PM) and open on weekends until 5 PM
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- The entrance is a bit difficult to find
- Honestly pleasantly pleased with this library since it has good lighting, good seating + outlets, and isn’t too quiet or crowded. The only con would probably be its location

Doe

🏆 Best architecture

Eat: False
- Possible if in a more hidden location
Outlets: 2/5
- Personally hard to find if not at the large tables but even then, the outlets are connected to the lamp so larger powerblocks aren’t able to be plugged in
Seating: 3/5
- Generally easy to find a seat with so many tables
Crowdedness: 3/5
- One of the central libraries so lots of traffic and lots of general visitors because of the architecture
- Busy during exam season
Noise: 2.5/5
- Echoey but quiet
Accessibility: 4/5
- Opens early and closes around 9 PM throughout weekdays and weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Beautiful architecture
- Connected with Bancroft, Moffitt, and Main Stacks

"Harry Potter"-esque interior

Earth Sciences & Map

Eat: False
- Not recommended
Outlets: 3.5/5
- I think there were some next to the desks
Seating: 1/5
- Only saw like 1-3 tables
Crowdedness: 4/5
- Nobody goes here
Noise: 5/5
- Almost no noise
Accessibility: 2/5
- Closes at 5 PM and not open on weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Located in one of the buildings near North Gate and is kind of hard to find
- Very old library containing lots of maps
- Closes early, wouldn’t recommend coming here to work for a long time
- I think only the people who work at the library go there

East Asian

🏆 Best views

Eat: False
- Only possible if in a cubicle
Outlets: 2/5
- Difficult to find unless at table
Seating: 3/5
- Personally thought it is difficult to find since the library isn’t too large
Crowdedness: 1.5/5
- Lots of traffic after noon
- Very busy during exam season
Noise: 4/5
- Very quiet
Accessibility: 2/5
- Closes at 5 PM and not open on weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Probably the most beautiful library on campus with great views and natural sunlight
- Bookable rooms are available but can be difficult to find

Views from top floor

Engineering (Kresge)

🏆 Best for guaranteed seating to do short-term work

NOTE: Review based on before renovation

Eat: False
- Easy to do so
Outlets: 4/5
- Extremely easy to find throughout the library but kind of hard of cubicles ironically
Seating: 4/5
- Lots of seating throughout the library, especially couch areas
Crowdedness: 2/5
- Very crowded since all of the engineering kids come here
- Very busy during exam season
Noise: 2/5
- Talking is allowed so wouldn’t recommend coming here if you need to focus
Accessibility: 4.5/5
- Closes late (I think midnight?) and open on weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Lots of bookable rooms - typically by CSM mentors
- Kind of musty
- Cool architecture, bunker style with an upper and lower floor
- Some unharmful homeless people

Double-decker levels of Kresge

Environmental Design (Wurster)

🏆 Best for vibes

Eat: False
- Wouldn’t recommend unless at the seating near the very edges of the library
Outlets: 3.5/5
- Generally available at the ends of the large tables
Seating: 4/5
- Lots of tables so should be relatively easy to find
Crowdedness: 2.5/5
- Moderately filled throughout the day
- Surprisingly very busy during exam season
Noise: 4/5
- For a large library, very quiet
Accessibility: 4.5/5
- Closes late at 10 PM and open on weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- I love this library for some reason, I think it’s very spacious, clean, and quiet
- Only two bookable rooms - one is very large while the other is small
- Sometimes unharmful homeless people but not too often
- Two levels but I’ve never been/don’t know how to get to the second level (seems like a studio?)

Ethnic Studies

Eat: False
Outlets: 2.5/5
- Library is pretty small, didn’t seem like there were a lot of available outlets
Seating: 2/5
- Very few tables and seats in the library since it’s so small
Crowdedness: 3/5
- During dead week, it was surprisingly crowded
Noise: 4/5
Accessibility: 3/5
- Closes at 5pm and opens semi-late
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter

Institute of Governmental Studies

Eat: False
Outlets: 3/5
- Library isn’t too large but there were outlets near every table
Seating: 3.5/5
- A few tables on the upper and lower levels
Crowdedness: 4/5
- Lesser known library so not too many people go to this library
Noise: 4/5
Accessibility: 3/5
- Even though it’s a lesser known library, it’s easy to find since it’s on the ground floor
- Closes at 5pm and opens semi-late
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter

Institute of Transportation Studies

🏆 Cutest last-minute library find

Eat: False
Outlets: 3/5
- Library isn’t too large but there were outlets near every table
Seating: 3.5/5
- Most of the seating is at the center of the library. There’s also a small couch area
Crowdedness: 4/5
- Lesser known library so not too many people go to this library
Noise: 3/5
- Can talk in this library
Accessibility: 3/5
- Kind of hard to find
- Closes at 5pm and opens semi-late
- There are no women’s restrooms in the same building… you need to go to the adjacent connecting building to go to the library
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- There’s a ping pong table and basketball hoop in the library

Main (Gardner) Stacks

🏆 Best for grinding

Eat: False
- Easy to do so if in a cubicle and really quiet
Outlets: 4.5/5
- Almost guaranteed to have an outlet anywhere you decide to sit (excluding couches)
Seating: 4/5
- Lots of seating whether it be at the large tables, cubicles, “peer pressure” desks, or couches
Crowdedness: 3/5
- Moderately filled throughout the day but traffic comes in and out
- Extremely packed during exam season, do not recommend
Noise: 5/5
- Dead silent
Accessibility: 4.5/5
- Closes late (I think midnight or 2 AM) and open on weekends
Comments
- Need Cal-ID to enter
- Very hard to navigate when coming for the first time
- Underground library with five floors
- Meeting rooms are generally easy to book and not too popular but most come with chalk boards
- Wi-Fi can be spotty at different levels of the library and generally no data down there
- Recommend coming here for long study sessions, feels great to leave afterwards to feel the fresh air
- Can be cold or stuffy temperature-wise

"Peer pressure" desks in Main Stacks

Mathematics Statistics

Eat: False
- Easy to do so if at the upper floor cubicles
Outlets: 2/5
- Cubicles on top floor don’t have outlets except for a few
- Public computer area has seating and outlets on the ground
Seating: 3.5/5
- Cubicles, tables, couches, desks
Crowdedness: 2/5
- Traffic comes in and out throughout the day but generally should be able to find a seat
- One of the “lesser known” libraries on campus since it’s located on the first floor of Evans Hall
- More busy during exam season but still less compared to other libraries
Noise: 4/5
- Surprisingly quiet
Accessibility: 3/5
- Closes at 8 PM and not open on weekends
Comments
- Don’t need Cal-ID to enter
- Can be difficult to find initially
- Very old, musty and small library
- Good place to pop in and do some work for a short amount of time

Moffitt