Freegal Music With a Library Card: Download Limits, Streaming and Reset Time

Written by Mustafa Bilgic, Operator Sources checked: September 26, 2026
✓ Last Updated: September 2026 | Checked against official sources by Mustafa Bilgic, Operator

Freegal Music is a music service that public libraries pay for so their cardholders can stream songs and download a few MP3s a week to keep. Each library sets its own weekly download limit, and the counter resets every Monday at 12:01 am Central Time. Use the planner to check your library's limit, see how many weeks an album or a batch of videos will take, and find the next reset in your own time zone.

Plan your Freegal downloads

Pick your library to see its weekly limit, then enter how many songs and videos you want. The planner spreads them over the weeks your limit allows, remembering that a video uses two downloads, and shows when your counter resets in your own time zone.

Next reset: Monday at 12:01 am Central Time

Choose a library to see its download limit, streaming rule and login.
Your week-by-week plan and next reset time will show here.

Freegal limits at ten library systems

The weekly download limit depends on your library, and the libraries below state different numbers. Five a week is common in this list, DC and Boston allow three, and two libraries have dropped the service.

LibraryDownloadsStreamingStatus
Los Angeles Public Library (CA)5 a weekUnlimitedOffered
LA County Library (CA)5 a weekUnlimited and ad-freeOffered
Phoenix Public Library (AZ)5 a weekUnlimitedOffered
Orange County Library System (FL)5 a weekUnlimitedOffered
DC Public Library (DC)3 a weekAll dayOffered
Boston Public Library (MA)3 a weekNot statedOffered
Kansas City Public Library (MO)Not statedNot statedOffered
Sacramento Public Library (CA)Not statedStreaming offeredOffered
Ocean County Library (NJ)Service endedEndedEnded August 2, 2026
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library (NC)Service endedEndedEnded August 2025

From each library's own page, checked September 26, 2026. Boston Public Library's page was read from an archived copy dated March 12, 2026, and Charlotte Mecklenburg's notice from a January 2026 copy. "Not stated" means the page gives no number; the counter at the top of Freegal shows yours after you log in.

How Freegal Music works

Freegal gives you two things: songs you download and keep, and music you stream while you are online. Library Ideas, the company behind it, explains the rules on its help desk:

  • A weekly download counter. The number at the top of the site is your weekly allotment; 3 means three downloads a week. It resets every Monday at 12:01 am Central Time.
  • One song at a time. You download songs individually, not whole albums, so a full album can take several weeks. Some songs are marked Album Only by their label, and those cannot be downloaded at all.
  • Videos cost two. A music video uses two downloads, and you need two left in the week to get one.
  • No take-backs. Once you click download, it counts, even if you cancel or choose play instead, and Freegal cannot credit it back. Phoenix Public Library and Orange County Library System in Florida warn about the same thing.
  • Streaming limits vary. The help desk describes a daily streaming allotment shown at the top of the page. Los Angeles Public Library, LA County Library, Phoenix and Orange County all describe streaming as unlimited, and DC Public Library says you can stream all day.

Getting started with your library card

You need a card from a library that pays for Freegal. In the app, you type your zip code to see subscribing libraries within 60 miles, or search by library name or city. The login screen then asks for your card number, and some libraries also want a PIN: Los Angeles Public Library and Orange County Library System ask for both, and Phoenix asks you to type the card number without spaces.

The service is free to you because your library pays for it. The songs download as MP3 files with no copy protection, so they play on any computer or MP3 player, and videos come as MP4 files that are yours to keep. Kansas City Public Library counts about 15 million songs and over 40,000 music videos in the catalog, while Boston Public Library says more than 20 million songs.

Keeping and using your music

What you download stays yours, within a personal license. Freegal's help desk says the music is for non-commercial, personal use: you cannot copy it for others or play it in public beyond the enjoyment of family and friends.

Back up your downloads. Freegal says its licensing agreements leave it unable to restore a music library you lose, so keep a copy on another computer, a cloud service or an external drive. Phoenix Public Library adds a small safety net: songs downloaded in the last two weeks can be downloaded again up to two times.

Audiobooks work the same way. Orange County Library System charges one download per audiobook track, so an audiobook with 60 tracks takes 12 weeks at five downloads a week. The planner above does this math for any number of tracks: enter them as songs.

When a library drops Freegal

Libraries do cancel Freegal. Ocean County Library in New Jersey ended its Freegal Music+ subscription on August 2, 2026, told customers they could use any remaining downloads until then, and pointed them to Hoopla for music. Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in North Carolina ended Freegal in August 2025: after August 1, 2025, music stored in the Freegal app was no longer available, playlists could not be kept, and customers were told to transfer their downloaded songs to another music library.

The lesson is simple: move your downloads out of the app and into your own music library as you go. For other music and movies through the library, see our guide to free streaming through your library and our list of the best library apps and services.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Freegal Music free with a library card?

Yes, if your library subscribes. Freegal says the service is underwritten by your local library, so you pay nothing, but you need a card from a library that has contracted for it.

How many songs can I download from Freegal each week?

Your library decides. Los Angeles Public Library, LA County Library, Phoenix Public Library and Orange County Library System allow five a week, and DC Public Library and Boston Public Library allow three. The counter at the top of Freegal shows your limit.

When does the Freegal download limit reset?

Every Monday at 12:01 am Central Time, so on the West Coast it happens late on Sunday evening. The planner shows the exact time in your own time zone.

Do I get to keep Freegal songs?

Yes. Songs download as MP3 files without copy protection and videos as MP4 files, and they are yours to keep for personal use. Back them up, because Freegal cannot restore music you lose.

Why did Freegal count a download I canceled?

Freegal counts a download as soon as you click the download button, even if you cancel it or play the song instead, and it cannot credit the download back. Stream a song first if you are not sure you want to keep it.

Does Freegal have a streaming limit?

The Freegal help desk describes a daily streaming allotment shown at the top of the page, but several libraries, including Los Angeles Public Library, LA County Library, Phoenix and Orange County, describe streaming as unlimited.

Related Library Guides

Free Streaming Through Your Library Best Library Apps and Services Digital Library Resources Get a Library Card Online Library Benefits Free Library Resources

Sources

Every rule, fee and figure on this page comes from the official page listed here. We read each one on September 26, 2026. Library Ideas' help articles are dated 2016 to 2023; the libraries' own pages carry their current limits.