Institutional sign-in
Users sign in with the credentials they already use at their university, and the app recognises their library account and permissions.
Guide · Library apps
Library app:
what it includes and how to get one.
What a library app is, which features it should offer a university community, and the difference between having your own branded app or sitting inside a vendor’s shared app.
Definition
A library app is a mobile application that gives access to a library’s services from the user’s phone. It usually includes the catalogue, the user’s account, current loans, renewals, holds and alerts. Apps connected to libraries with RFID add self-checkout and self-return of physical items through the phone’s own NFC reader.
- It connects to the library management system: without that connection it is only a search catalogue.
- It can be published under the institution’s brand or form part of a shared app.
- NFC self-checkout requires compatible RFID tags and a phone able to read them.
- Notices and the events calendar turn the app into a communication channel with the community.
Are you a student looking for your library’s app?
The apps we build are published under each institution’s own name and brand on Google Play and the App Store. Search for your university or library name in your phone’s store, or check your library’s website. This page is aimed at institutions that want to offer the service.
Features
What your library app
should include.
A reasonable minimum for a university library, ordered from essential to differentiating.
Catalogue and holds
Item search, availability and hold management so users can plan their visit to the library.
Account, loans and renewals
Current loans, due dates and renewals from the phone, subject to the library’s circulation policies.
NFC self-checkout
The phone’s NFC reader reads the item’s RFID tag, the app records the loan and handles the security alarm automatically.
Self-return inside the library
The app requires the user to be inside the library to return an item: it records the transaction and the user leaves the item at the designated point.
Alerts and events
Due-date and event reminders on the phone, plus opening hours, closures and news on the app’s home screen, in your library’s voice.
Institutional identity
The university’s name, colours and logo, published in the stores as the library’s own application.
Multiple languages
Nine languages included, chosen by each user, with translation into more for an international community.
The actual scope of each feature is validated against the library management system, the devices and the configuration agreed for each project. See the app in detail
Two models
Your own app
or a shared app.
This is the first decision of the project and it shapes cost, timeline and control over the product.
| Criterion | The institution’s own app | The vendor’s shared app |
|---|---|---|
| Branding | The university’s name, colours and logo in the store listing and throughout the app. | The vendor’s brand; the library appears as one more location. |
| Time to launch | Longer: development, integration, testing and store publication. | Shorter: registering the library in an app that already exists. |
| Cost | Higher upfront investment, aimed at a durable service of your own. | Usually lower, in the form of a subscription. |
| Features | Agreed with the library and open to extension. | Whatever the shared product offers all of its customers. |
| Communicating with users | Your own alerts on the phone and in the app, with the library’s identity. | Subject to the vendor’s rules and format. |
| When to choose it | Institutions that care about the campus experience and want a recognisable service. | Libraries with a tight budget or that need something immediate. |
Prestalib builds the first model: bespoke apps published under each institution’s identity, compatible with most modern library management systems via SIP2.
Alerts on the phone and in the app
Your library
has news to share.
The app reminds users on their phone of what they must not forget and shows your library’s notices on its home screen, which you can change at any time without publishing a new version.
- A reminder before a loan is due, with renewal from the app.
- An events calendar with reminders and add-to-calendar.
- Opening hours, closures and emergency notices on the app’s home screen.
Through your own library app, with your branding and in each user’s language.
YOUR LIBRARYnow
How it gets built
From the first conversation
to the published app.
Review your library
Your library system, RFID, authentication and the services you want to offer.
We configure your solution
We adapt the app or the devices to your branding and connect the agreed features.
Test together
We validate borrowing, returns and permissions with test items and accounts.
Support your launch
We prepare implementation, support and updates.
To prepare your proposal
It helps to know your library management system, your country and campuses, the type of RFID tags and your community’s languages. You can write to us before you have every detail.
From product to practice
Apps in real university libraries.
Explore public examples of Prestalib on users’ own phones.
Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
prest.ON
The university explains how students use the app for borrowing, returns, renewals and catalogue access.
View the university service
Universidad del País Vasco
Prestalib UPV/EHU
A published app for account access, borrowing and returns with a compatible NFC phone.
View the App Store listingThese are examples of university use. Features and configuration vary by institution.
Frequently asked questions
Library apps,
specifically.
What is a library app?
A library app is a mobile application that gives access to a library’s services from the phone: catalogue search, the user’s account, current loans, renewals, holds, alerts and, in apps that include it, self-checkout and self-return of physical items.
What should a university library app include?
At minimum: sign-in with institutional credentials, catalogue, an account with loans and renewals, due-date alerts and library notifications. If the library has RFID, self-checkout and self-return from the user’s own phone are the most visible service improvement for students.
Is a dedicated app better than being inside a shared app?
A dedicated app carries your institution’s name, colours and services, and is published in the stores as your university’s application. A shared vendor app is usually faster to deploy and cheaper, in exchange for less control over branding and the product roadmap. Prestalib builds bespoke apps with the institution’s own identity.
Will the app work with our library management system?
In most cases, yes: Prestalib works with modern library management systems via SIP2. We build the connection to the system you already use so the app can read accounts, items and circulation policies without changing your internal operations.
How many languages can the app have?
The app can be translated into any language. Each project includes nine languages (Spanish, English, Catalan, Basque, Galician, Portuguese, French, Italian and German), and more can be added.
I am a student looking for my library’s app. Can I download it here?
Not from this website. Each app is published under its institution’s own brand on Google Play and the App Store. Search for your university or library name in your phone’s store, or check your library’s website. This site is aimed at institutions that want to offer the service.
Your next step
Your quote,
in two minutes.
Starting prices on show, a compatibility check and a formal PDF quote for your university, without waiting for a call: the access link goes to your institutional email.