Number of Holds Allowed
Established Library card holders with Mid-Continent Public Library can have up to 400 holds on physical materials at one time.
Customers who have registered online but have not yet visited a branch to update their account by showing a photo ID to a staff member are allowed up to 2 holds.
New customers are allowed up to 10 holds during the first two weeks. During this time, the Library will mail a notice to the customer to confirm their address and share the wide range of services and materials available through MCPL.
All customers are able to place up to 50 holds at one time in Libby (OverDrive).
Customers using a student Library card, out-of-district card, or research card follow the same hold and checkout limits . However, some student cards are for online materials only depending on arrangements with the participating school district.
Number of Check Outs Allowed
Established Library card holders can have up to 200 items checked out at one time.
Before updating their account with a staff member in branch by showing a photo ID, customers who have registered online are not yet able to check out materials.
New customers are able to check out up to 4 items in the first 2 weeks. During this time, the Library will mail a notice to the customer to confirm their address and share the wide range of services and materials available through MCPL.
All customers can check out up to 50 titles at once in Libby (OverDrive).
Customers using a student Library card, out-of-district card, or research card follow the same hold and checkout limits. However, some student cards are for online materials only depending on arrangements with the participating school district.
Checkout Duration
The checkout period of most library materials is 7, 14, or 28 days. Items with a loan period less than 28 days will be clearly marked. For your convenience, a receipt will be printed showing the due date for each item checked out.
How will I know when my holds are available?
You can find out if your holds are available one of two ways:
Log into the online catalog and click your username in the upper right-hand corner. Click On Hold. Under On Hold, Ready now will display (in green) with the number of items available now. The item records for these holds will display at the top of your hold list showing the “Pickup by” date and the “Pickup at” location.
The library will also notify you when your holds are available. You will be notified by postal mail unless you have requested to be notified by email or text.
Due Date and Overdue Reminders
Library customers can receive reminders when items checked out from the library are approaching their due date or are overdue. Customers who receive notices by email or text message will receive a notice three days and one day before the due date of an item.
Notices will also be sent when an item has become overdue, as well as two weeks, four weeks, and six weeks after the due date. Customers are billed for the replacement of an item when it has been overdue for six weeks.
To change how you receive notices from the library (email, text or mailed), log into your account and select Request Account Update or contact staff at a local branch.
Renewing a Checkout
If another user is not waiting for your item, you may renew it in person, via telephone, or through the online catalog. Items may be renewed twice.
Items acquired through Interlibrary Loan from other library systems are not eligible for renewal through the catalog. Contact your local branch to request a renewal of ILL materials.
To renew a single item online
- Access our Library catalog.
- Log in with your Library card number and PIN.
- Click the blue Username button in the upper right corner of the page.
- Select Checked out from the dropdown menu.
- Select the blue Renew button next to the item you want to renew.
- If the item is available for renewal you will see a green renewal message. If the item cannot be renewed you will see a red message with the reason the item cannot be renewed.
To renew multiple items online
- Access our Library catalog.
- Log in with your Library card number and PIN.
- Click the blue Username button in the upper right corner of the page.
- Select Checked out from the dropdown menu.
- Check the boxes beside the items you want to renew, or check the box above your first item to select all.
- Click the Renew Selected button to renew all the selected items.
- The status of the renewal process will display at the top of the page.
- Not all items are eligible for renewal at all times.