Learn more about EVPL's eBook and eAudiobook collection

Libby and hoopla: Details, Tips, and How EVPL Balances Demand and Costs

Kate Linderman, Director of Collections, EVPL

Have you ever wondered how librarians curate and maintain digital collections? Or how you can get the fastest access to eBooks and eAudiobooks (eMaterials) you’re excited about? Or even how much these items cost? 

eBooks and digital audiobooks–available on apps like hoopla and Libby–have made borrowing books from EVPL even more convenient for readers. Electronic materials have surged in popularity since 2020, and in 2024, eBook and eAudiobook use accounted for 33% (⅓) of EVPL’s total circulation.

EVPL eMaterials are available through two main options: Libby and hoopla. Both products have free apps available in Apple and Google app stores, and to create an account, you only need a library card and an email address. Many people use exclusively one app or the other, but to get the most out of your EVPL borrowing experience, I recommend using both, because if an eBook or eAudiobook you’re looking for isn’t in Libby, it may be in hoopla, and vice versa.

One of the most important things we want library users to understand is that the prices of individual licenses for popular eMaterials are typically more than twice the cost of the same book in print or as a physical audiobook. To help manage costs, EVPL utilizes several different approaches to help people get their next must-read more quickly, while also being good stewards of the EVPL materials budget (which is 12% of the overall operating budget for the library). Our ultimate goal is to provide EVPL customers with the most current and most popular material, and at the same time provide a collection that has something for everyone.

Q:  For library users, what is the difference between hoopla and Libby?

Libby

• Libby is the most popular library eMaterials vendor in the country, providing EVPL access to purchase most “front list” (new) titles from the “big five” publishers, in addition to backlist titles. 
  • hoopla is often an option when a book isn’t in Libby or has many holds on it
    • See a list of current items with multiple holds in Libby that are immediately available on hoopla. (as of March 2025).

• EVPL collection librarians select the titles and number of licenses purchased for the Libby collection. Licenses for bestselling titles or titles by very popular authors usually have a higher price point than others. When a title is extremely popular, we do try to keep up with demand, but to buy enough licenses to fully satisfy the waiting list for just ONE popular title could potentially cost us several thousand dollars. If we did this for every popular title, our electronic collections budget would be exhausted very quickly, limiting the variety of titles overall.

hoopla – Instant and Flex

Here’s an overview of hoopla Instant:

• There is some overlap between Libby and hoopla, but not all titles purchased in Libby are in hoopla, and vice versa. (If one app doesn’t have what you’re looking for, check the other!) 
  • See a list of current items with multiple holds in Libby that are immediately available on hoopla. (as of March 2025)
• Library customers can have up to 20 borrows per month
• Titles in hoopla Instant include eBooks, eAudiobooks, comics, movies, tv series, music and Bingepasses, which allow for multiple items to be checked out with one borrow.
• hoopla Instant has fewer “front list” (current bestsellers), but titles that are available have no waits. 
• Much of the hoopla Instant catalog consists of older, or “backlist” titles from popular authors. 
• The content of hoopla Instant catalog changes periodically, and EVPL does not control the overall content of the catalog.  
• EVPL pays up to $3.99 per loan for hoopla Instant (temporary licenses).   

Because of the instant access to popular titles, hoopla gains more popularity each month.  

Separately, hoopla Flex is a new option that EVPL launched in September 2024, which operates similarly to Libby.  

• We purchase licenses, and material checks out to one person at a time. 
• At this time we are building our hoopla Flex content. Because our collection on hoopla Flex is small, customers are allowed to check out 2 titles at a time and place 2 holds at a time on materials in the collection.  
• Customers can suggest and request new titles through hoopla. 
• The licensing structure and the prices are the same through hoopla as they are through Libby.

Q:  How does EVPL get eMaterials for hoopla and Libby?

A:  Developing and maintaining these collections can be a complex process, as the availability and price of eBooks and audiobooks (eMaterials) are determined by the publisher.  As the popularity of eMaterials has increased, so have publisher efforts to control the price of licenses and terms for libraries. Since 2020, the price of electronic books and audiobooks has continued to rise. 

Right now, EVPL’s cost of an eBook ranges from around $27 up to $57 per license. For eAudiobooks, the cost ranges from $42 – $80 per license. 

Q: So, if we have all of these electronic books, why does anyone have to wait for them? Shouldn’t they be available all the time?  

A: Unfortunately, no. Borrowing electronic materials is similar to borrowing physical materials; however, instead of purchasing actual physical books and audiobooks, we purchase copies of licenses for eMaterials. 

I like to tell people to picture a bookcase, where we place eMaterials when we purchase them. 

• When one is borrowed, it comes off the shelf, just like a physical book or audiobook would. 
• If we owned more than one license, there would be another copy available for the next person to check out. 
• When all of the available copies are checked out, customers can place holds and wait in line for the next available copy.  

The process is exactly the same, but the books are virtual, not physical copies.

Q:  If a book is popular, can you get more copies or quicker access?  

If a book is popular enough, a publisher may make a special “per use” license available for us to purchase. EVPL also provides access to hoopla, which is mainly a catalog of “instant borrow” or “cost per use” licenses. We pay for those items as they’re used, rather than purchasing a set number of licenses.  

We also focus on keeping a variety of (less costly) formats of popular titles on hand so patrons have options. For example, extra copies of print material are purchased for popular titles, and when available, physical audiobooks (CDs) and Playaways are purchased to help mitigate demand for popular titles. 

For further detail, here is a cost comparison of popular titles (as of March 2025).

Q:  The word “licenses” has been used a lot. How many different kinds of licenses does EVPL use, and what do they cost?  

There are a few different kinds of licenses available to us; what is available and how much it costs depends on the publisher.

If you have more questions about Libby, hoopla, or other parts of our digital or physical collections, you can reach our Collection Development team at collections@evpl.org. 

Director of Collections

Kate Linderman

---

Kate Linderman is a life long reader and student of history, she also enjoys gardening, calligraphy and fluffy cat herding.