This month we’re excited to celebrate Library Card Sign-up Month, an annual event where we join with the American Library Association to promote the benefits of a library card for students, families, and learners of all ages.

Anyone who lives (or pays property taxes) in Washington County is eligible for a free library card. You can visit any library branch to apply or fill out an application online. Learn more about how to get a library card.

In addition to books, a library card gives you access to a range of digital tools and online resources that can take the library on the go and support your entertainment and educational needs.

Here are five of our favorite things you can do with a library card:

1. Download eBooks and eAudiobooks

We’ve partnered with public libraries across the Twin Cities to build a robust, accessible digital collection available through the MELSA: Twin Cities Metro eLibrary. Download the Libby app from OverDrive to start browsing our entire digital collection.

2. Check out a hotspot or Chromebook

Access the internet for free with a Wi-Fi hotspot or Google Chromebook kit. Our hotspots make it possible to get online anywhere with T-Mobile service. Learn more.

3. Access online homework help

Homework HelpNow offers free online tutoring services for kids, teens, and adults between 1 p.m. and 11 p.m. each day. Students can also submit papers for review by a writing expert, and build skills through an online library of lessons, videos, tests, and more.

4. Learn a new language

Transparent Language offers interactive, self-paced lessons to learn over 110 different languages, including lessons for ESL learners.

5. Read popular magazines

Libby offers instant digital access to more than 3,000 popular magazines. You can check out the latest issue without a waitlist or explore up to three years of back issues.

While we could go on and on about how many great things you can access using a library card, we’ll hold ourselves to just these five for now.

If you already have a library card, you’re awesome! Consider trying a new database or tool you haven’t accessed before. Or, share something you love about the library with your friends in person or online so they can discover how great a library card is too.

If you have any questions about how up your library card use, talk to the staff at your local branch – they love to help!