Quick, Easy (and legal!) way to get magazines for free

Did you know you can save money and read magazines for free? Even current editions?

I love magazines. In particular, however, I love being able to read magazines for free. In the rare moments I get to have some ‘me’ time, I love nothing more than sitting in a big comfy chair and having some much needed escapism – catching up on the latest celebrity gossip, checking out the latest fashion trends, or reading about the latest toys and products to come on the market.

There used to be a time when my whole house would be cluttered with copies of magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Glamour, and then moving on to buy a magazine subscription to Hello Magazine and Mother & Baby, but in recent months I haven’t bought a single one. And not for the reasons you might think.

Is this a boycott against photo shopped images? Nah. I know it happens, and I am intelligent enough to appreciate that the images I see are a far jump from reality.  I will raise my daughter to know that the reality of beauty is far from what she will see on the cover of a magazine.

Is it a frustration with the number of advertisements? Nah. Although I have to admit the number of advertorial pages in some modern mags is appalling.

No, it is far simpler than that. I have found a way to read magazines for FREE via my local library on my phone or ipad. With the current cost of living crisis, cancelling subscriptions may be the obvious first step to cutting your households expenses, but you don’t need to miss out on the magazines you know and love.

Sure, I miss the novelty of turning the pages and the gorgeous smell of freshly printed paper, but I can still get my quota of escapism, on my ipad thanks to the Libby app which allows me to read magazines for free via my local library.

How to get magazines for free

The concept is very simple. Your local library gives you an online code to access their online magazine network via the Libby for Libraries app. Once registered and linked to your library account, you can simple download CURRENT editions of your favourite magazines for free (with 350 to choose from!) and read them right there on your phone. You can even be alerted when a new addition comes out.

Here are just a small selection of magazines you can read for free available on the app:

• Radio Time
• Woman’s Weekly
• Country Living
• Minecraft World
• Good Food
• Good Housekeeping
• Woman & Home
• Gardener’s World
• Closer
• Heat
• Grazia

I have saved an absolute fortune reading my magazines on Libbym, and can honestly say I may never buy an actual magazine ever again!

For those of you who still fail to see the value of libraries, now might just be the time to pay them a visit!

PS – I assume this is a UK wide initiative and not just a Solihull Council thing. Might be worth investigating with your local library before you pay a visit!! 🙂