Many years ago, my local library announced that they were going to start offering digital magazines for cardholders, and I remember that I was super excited at the idea of being able to read text in magazines again. Because of low vision, most of my experiences “reading” physical magazines consists of exclusively looking at the pictures and trying to guess what is happening, so having access to digital magazines makes it possible for me to read articles in large print and with my preferred display customizations.
Admittedly, the first few digital magazine apps I tried were not very easy to use with low vision and were incompatible with a lot of assistive technologies, so I was thrilled when my library switched to the Libby app, which offers several accessibility features for visually impaired users like myself. Here is an overview of Libby magazine accessibility features and my experiences with reading magazines with the Libby app and low vision.
Libby app overview
Libby is a free app developed by OverDrive that allows library cardholders to borrow digital ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines at no cost. There are no subscription fees, no in-app purchases, and no late fees, as borrowed titles are returned automatically at the end of the loan period. The app is available through more than 22,000 public libraries worldwide, as well as many academic and school libraries; Libby is related to the Sora reading application for K-12 schools as both applications are maintained by OverDrive. The Libby app is available for free on iOS, Android, and through the Libby web application with no download required.
Related links
- Libby, by OverDrive on the App Store (apple.com)
- Libby, by OverDrive – Apps on Google Play
- Libby by OverDrive web application
- Sora Accessibility Features For Low Vision
- Mainstream eReader Apps and Low Vision Accessibility
Setting up a Libby account
After installing the app, readers search for their library by name and log in with their library card number and PIN or password. For those who do not yet have a library card, Libby can help locate a nearby library and provides information about how to apply; some libraries offer instant digital access through an online application process, while others require an in-person visit to activate library cards.
Multiple library cards from different library systems can be added to a single Libby account, which can significantly expand the available magazine collection. Some library systems have reciprocal borrowing agreements, and tools like ReciproCard can help identify which libraries offer free cards that work with Libby.
Related links
- ReciproCard — Find Free Library Cards for Libby
- How To Request Multiple Library Cards For Digital Content
- My Favorite Digital Library Resources For Low Vision
Finding and borrowing magazines with Libby
Magazines in Libby are always available to borrow with no waitlists and no holds; magazines do not count against a patron’s standard borrowing limit. Libby offers thousands of magazine titles from around the world, including popular titles like National Geographic, Reader’s Digest, and Highlights for Children, as well as niche hobby and interest publications. My personal favorites tend to revolve around food-related topics like cooking and nutrition, technology, design, and longform articles, but there is genuinely something for everyone. I enjoy browsing Libby and finding new magazines to read on topics that I might not otherwise come across, especially since I can’t see what’s on a traditional newsstand or in the magazine section of a local store.
To find magazines in the Libby app:
- Open the Libby app and select the Search tab at the bottom of the screen. From the “Explore With Filters” section, select Magazines
- Search by magazine name or topic using the search bar, then use the Preferences menu to filter by Format > Magazines
- The Newsstand (accessible from the magazine rack on the shelf) also provides a browsable view of the full magazine collection
To borrow a magazine, tap its cover to view details, select the desired issue, choose a loan period, and tap Open Magazine to begin reading immediately. When a loan period is selected, it becomes the default for future checkouts of that format at that library. Magazines can always be checked out again and will automatically open to the most recent page read.
When closing a magazine, Libby will ask whether to keep the issue and receive notifications about new issues. Kept magazines and subscriptions appear on the Magazine Rack on the Shelf, where users can access them at any time.
Navigating and reading magazines with Libby
Basic navigation within a magazine uses familiar touch gestures: tapping or swiping on the right side of the screen turns the page forward, and the pinch gesture adjusts zoom level. There are also options to search within the text of a magazine and to add bookmarks; while the feature is labeled as “Bookmarks & Highlights,” I have never been able to highlight inside of a magazine with Libby, though bookmarks are saved to the issue and will be available again if the same issue is borrowed in the future. Magazines can also be read offline once they are downloaded to the device.
When reading magazines with the Libby magazine reader, users can toggle a two-page layout or one-page layout by selecting the two-page icon in the navigation bar, which looks like a circle with two sets of lines inside. I frequently use the one-page layout to fit the page to my screen’s width, which makes it easier to read with low vision.
Libby accessibility features for low vision
Adjusting Libby text sizes
Libby uses the device’s built-in text size setting and scales the app’s text accordingly. Within the magazine reader, text size can also be adjusted manually by tapping the Appearance button (displayed as an uppercase “A”). The Libby app has 15 font size options, which are configured on a slider; 1 is the smallest option, and 15 is the largest. The smallest font size for the Libby magazine reader is equivalent to approximately 8 pt font, and the largest font size for the Libby magazine reader is equivalent to approximately 28 pt font, based on comparisons with printed text.
It is worth noting that text size adjustments do not work with all magazines, especially those in fixed layouts. For fixed layout titles, I often use Article View to read content in large print, which I cover in another section. Other font customizations such as line spacing or font styles are not available for magazines in the Libby app, though they are available for books.
Zoom
For fixed-layout magazines, the built-in Zoom function is the primary tool for enlarging content. The Zoom button is accessible at the top of the screen; after enabling it, pinching in or out changes the zoom level, and fingers can be dragged across the screen to pan around the page. Libby is also compatible with device-level screen magnification features, such as iOS Zoom or Android Magnification, as well as the pinch-to-zoom gesture.
Article View
Article View is my favorite accessibility feature in the Libby magazine reader. It displays article text in a simplified layout, removing surrounding graphics and presenting the content in large print with a high-contrast background. For readers with low vision who find visually cluttered magazine layouts difficult to navigate, Article View can make it much easier to focus on text and follow along with articles.
To enable Article View, tap the Article View icon at the bottom center of the screen, then scroll to read. Forward and backward buttons at the bottom left allow navigation between articles, and the Table of Contents provides an overview of all available articles in the issue. Text from Article View can also be copied and pasted into other applications, such as a Notes app or a text-to-speech tool.
Libby color options
Libby adapts to the device’s light or dark mode setting automatically. Readers can also manually select a lighting option (light, dark, or sepia) within the reader itself. Another strategy I use to read Libby magazines with low vision is to turn on screen inversion or invert colors to recognize text on low-contrast backgrounds.
Related links
- A to Z of Assistive Technology for Reading Digital Text
- Choosing Between Light Mode and Dark Mode For Low Vision
- How To Use Invert Colors With Low Vision
Reading Libby magazines with a screen reader
Libby is compatible with VoiceOver (iOS) and TalkBack (Android), as well as system text-to-speech tools such as Select-to-Speak, though the majority of magazines do not offer alt text for images (with the exception of embedded hyperlinsk for ads). When a screen reader is active, Read From Here mode can be activated to read magazine text read aloud continuously from the current position. For best results, I recommend using Article View or the simplified display listed below, as it presents linearized text without the image-heavy layout of the standard magazine view. Libby does not have a built-in read aloud feature for magazines.
Related links
- How To Use VoiceOver With Low Vision on iPad
- How To Use Text-To-Speech With Low Vision
- How To Write Alt Text and Image Descriptions for the Visually Impaired
- Purposes of Media Descriptions for Visual Impairment
View Libby magazines with simplified display (requires keyboard)
Libby offers an accessibility view designed for screen reader users that displays text with a small sans-serif font and has buttons for the Libby menu and navigating to the next page; users do not need to have a screen reader turned on to access this page. I activated this view by using the keyboard shortcut Shift + ” on my iPad, Android tablet, and computer; I could not find an icon or other button for activating this view without a screen reader. Pinch-to-zoom and swipe gestures for turning pages are not available, though users can scroll up/down on a page. While I could not change the font size on my screen when using an iPad or Android device, I could increase the font size when reading on my computer with browser zoom.
For students with low vision who do not use large print or students with CVI, this simplified layout may be easier to access compared to the default Libby magazine interface. I could still access the pictures in reflowable layout books and fixed layout books; that said, text for advertisements or illustrations appeared as an image instead of as text, and hyperlinks within images did not work.
Libby keyboard shortcuts and keyboard access
Libby supports external keyboard navigation, which can be used with or without a screen reader. The full list of keyboard shortcuts within the Libby magazine reader is as follows:
- Open Navigation: Shift + N
- Add or remove bookmark: Shift + B
- Articles / Article View: Shift + T
- Close magazine: Shift + Q
- Simplified display: Shift + “
- Previous page: Left Arrow
- Next page: Right Arrow
- Previous article: Shift + Left Arrow
- Next article: Shift + Right Arrow
- Table of contents: Shift + C
- Bookmarks: Shift + M
- Search within magazine: Shift + S
- Appearance: Shift + A
- Dictionary: Shift + D
- Recent places: Shift + H
- About this magazine: Shift + O
- Zoom: Shift + Z
Additional tips for reading magazines with low vision
- I typically prefer to read magazines on a tablet because of the larger screen, and because I can position the screen under the bifocal in my glasses. Learn more about choosing a tablet in Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Tablets
- Looking for another source for accessible magazines? NFB-Newsline offers several text-based versions of magazines at no charge for qualifying individuals in the US (NFB membership not required). Learn more at NFB-NEWSLINE® | National Federation of the Blind and in my post Accessing The News With Assistive Technology
- Both magazines and textbooks often come in fixed layouts, which can be somewhat more challenging to read with large print. I talk more about the differences between fixed layouts and responsive/reflowable layouts in Ten Questions To Ask When Buying Digital Textbooks
- When I was reading a magazine in the Libby app, I learned about several podcasts that I was able to share with students in a history activity a few weeks later. I shared a few examples in History Podcasts and Audio-Based Resources For VI Students
Published December 28, 2017. Updated May 2026