UCSF Library

Was visiting a friend and while I was waiting for her to get out of class I decided to spend a few hours here to get my work done (and to pretend I was one of the cool smarty students that go here). For a random Friday afternoon this place was pretty packed so I walked around for a good half hour trying to find a secluded spot. The floor I entered on was definitely the nicest. It had a small café, a few desks, a few sofa chairs, and a stunning landscape view.
However there were too many people here so I went to the top floor. There are a couple special events rooms but the area by the elevator was empty and it had one extremely long table that faced a giant window with an overview of a few buildings. This was a great spot to work at but if you have a mac charger without the extension cord, you won’t be able to plug your charger into the outlets on the floors. As a result I moved to the back area of the floor. This area wasn’t as nice. The area is cramped, fairly dark, and not particularly clean. However it had outlets I could use.
Overall, it’s a decent library. The views and cafes are a plus but I definitely wish this place was bigger.

This place is neat. Clean and huge and quiet. The scenery outside is serene. A view of the Golden Gate is probably better than any you’ll find atop a tour bus. Came here to read and get some work done and it was pleasant and the wifi was working well without issues. The students here are all buried deep in their books and a fart would probably give them a heart attack so it’s a great working environment for the non-​lactose intolerant. The study rooms are also superb, just say you have a reservation to enough people in the rooms and you’re bound to kick somebody out who did the same thing to another person.
Come here for the view. And please hold in your fart (s).

Great place to study because of the great views it has of the city!
My friend and I went here Sunday and it was a decent experience. We came at 10:30 not knowing that on Sundays they open at 12pm so we just walked around the are and came back at around 11:40. There were people lined up already but everyone was civil.

This spot is wonderful. I am not a UCSF student but I had a meeting there with an acquaintance. The coffee place is enjoyable and I ended up working there for couple hours. Very convenient and quiet here.
One of the best libraries in my list so far.

This library in every way makes you feel what it must be like to be in heaven! It i an amazing experience each time any one of us uses it… that simple!

Amazing lighting, comfy seating, super quiet — perfect for studying.

Such a great library! It’s nestled in the middle of the UCSF campus on the top of a hill. Super serene and beautiful.
The library has five floors total and a small café on the third floor (ground level is the third floor). The floors become increasingly quiet the higher you get, so plan accordingly. Next to the library are a number of small eateries (Panda Express, Jamba Juice, Subway, various cafes, etc.) which makes it super convenient to step out for a quick bite of food.
Highly recommend!

The UCSF Library is wonderful — great selection, lotsa of activities & community outreach programs. You can ordered & return books from any Library in the UCSF Library system. You can request & renew books online, Simply love the UCSF Library!

I love this library! It’s full of studious, serious people, they just opened caffe central inside (I tried a yummy mocha today), and it is open to the public. You can check in with the front desk person for a 2 hour computer usage code. I also love that they provide free ear plugs and that there are clean restrooms.

Its a nice place to study, but it attracts a lot of loiterers and homeless. I would recommend this for a cold afternoon because there is new coffee shop in the library! Their internet seems to work well too.

We got a tip that the UCSF Library was a really nice study area in the city. Most definitely!
We, erm, aren’t in school at the moment, but I always love a nice and quiet study area. You can get into the UCSF library regardless of if you’re a student, and get away with using their couches and tables.
It’s not just any study area, though. This one has an amazing view over Golden Gate Park, the Presidio, St. Ignatius Church, Golden Gate Bridge, the bay, the Marin Headlands, and the Pacific Ocean. It’s a much different view than from the other viewpoints in the city. While places like Bernal Heights offer a breath-​taking view of endless houses, the UCSF view is much more earthy, with vegetation and ocean instead.
They know they have a great view, and set up a bunch of super comfy chairs. It’s very comfy.
If you are in the city for a while, or are looking for a study place, check this place out!

This place is quite, has fast free WiFi and I get a lot of work done here. My fav spot for studying.

very quiet. YES. lots of large tables with lights. YES. lots of outlets. YES. and free wifi… YES!!!
went to study here with my friend and i love this place compared to SF state’s library. yeah yeah, i actually don’t go to any of these schools.
*POINTS* SHE DOESN’T EVEN GO HERE!!!
yeah, but this is a sweet study spot. i’d highly suggest it for weekends because parking here really sucks on the weekdays when it’s limited to two hours or meter parking. come at 4pm if you really want to stay here, since the two hour limit ends at 6pm. you can also come at 6pm because meters are donezo as well.
there are some study rooms but reserved for UCSF students, you would need an ID to make an appointment. i did hear from a friend that it is possible to book study rooms here if you are an employee of UCSF, so that’s awesome!
there are some randoms that come here and yes, they don’t even go here either. but yeah, awesome quiet space in SF to study and there are some lounge chairs if you want to rest and take a break. nice view too if you get more toward the window side.

nice atmosphere to stop by to work on assignments. The tables have outlets… food is just right around the corner. The view is great all the way around. Internet is open to the public and there are lounge chairs for you to use if you feel sleepy.
I would keep an eye out for your personal belongings if you are not here with friends. (considering this is a public place)

Great place to study, very comfortable and clean. UCSF has a guest internet service available.

Decent place to study. Probably one of the better places in the city in this regard…
Really not too many homeless people at all. Not sure what the other reviewers below were saying. There a couple of them but really not many and they never bug you. Just don’t sit in the sleeper area on the main floor and you are good.
The main problem with this library is it doesn’ have many books and It’s mainly a study library for the snooty medical kids. The egos that young nurses and Drs have is hard to absorb some imes.
Not sure what Meg M in another review was saying — Internet connection NEVER fails me. There is one room where it is hard to get access otherwise most every room is covered well.
Not too much to complain about except the diversity of people is mainly just UCSF medicine kids.
Nice, Clean, comfortable chairs and good study chairs too. They also keep library hours open later for students (an open earlier).
I didn’t realize they had treadmill desks… I’ll have to check those out next time. I have never seen them.
Parking — park in the outter sunset and steal a ride on the muni to this place. Takes 5 minutes.
Great view of the city from here!

After desperately looking all over the city for a quiet public study area, I finally found the UCSF library. In addition to having several floors with a mixture of cubicles, study rooms (must be UCSF student to reserve), large study tables and couches, I must say that the view is unbeatable. With the library situated on top of parnassus, your studies don’t appear as dreary with a view of the golden gate bridge.
Only downside is that there are some homeless patrons that sleep in little nooks around the library. That wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t snore so loud! So I was very careful to never leave my valuables unattended. I suggest you do the same.
Bottom line: Best view of San Francisco from a public library; keep a close eye on your possessions.

Love this place… it’s CLEAN, quiet, and not filled with little kids running around like they do at the local branch public libraries. Great place to study and at some parts of the library you even have a nice lookout of the beautiful city (absolute plus when there is no overcast). There’s comfy «breaker» seats where many people around here take naps. The cafeteria half a block down is convenient and tasty, too! You’ll never go hungry while you’re studying.
The only downsides about this library is the location because there’s never any all day parking around and the hours… They close quite early every day =(
Definitely come by and study though!

Good library with great views of San Francisco. It reminds me of Oakland Public Library except the ceiling is not as high and it seems a little more stuffy. Not a lot of outlets for computer work but there are plenty of study carrels.
Bathroom is a little messy but a safe haven nonetheless. Like the rest of SF, parking is a challenge.

Nice views. Plenty of tables on which to spread out and study. Attached to a cafeteria where you can get food and refill coffees.
For non-​students it opens at 7:45am on weekdays and 10am on saturdays– which is super late for me.
Internet cuts in and out inexplicably. There are only a certain number of IP addresses on the guest connection so you can get kicked off for hours at a time. LAME
Sketchy characters abound (comes with the territory in San Francisco, I know) so you can’t leave your stuff on a table or it may get jacked. It’s a pain to pack up every time you want to go to the bathroom.
Group study rooms available but can’t be used without a reservation, and can’t make a reservation without a UCSF ID. Not good for visiting students like me.
But overall really nice for a public-​ish library. Cannot be beat as far as forcing you to focus on studying

One of the best universities libraries in the US! Amazing views, atmosphere and facility. It’s relatively small. Open to public. 24 hours for UCSF faculty and staff.
Unfortunately after moving to Mission Bay campus I didn’t get to hang out at this library a lot. It’s very quiet very studying-​conducive and its vibe will make you miss this place for sure.

I am so impressed by the fact that this library has threadmills hooked up to computers so you could study and walk at the same time. I’m pretty sure every library should have this since everyone knows that you learn better after having physical activity. I went here on a weekend so it was pretty quiet. I was surprised that there were a couple floors underground and above ground. The layout kind of confused me since I am used to libraries that tend to be a big open space but this is SF afterall. It does look new and clean and I definitely wouldnt mind studying here.

Finally, my very own sanctum! .well, kind of…
Grad student’s heaven! Yesyesyes.
This is both the best and the worst place for me to study. Why? Because it’s the ideal location for solitude, but there is always a magnificently distracting view of something. During the day, it might be the exquisite architecture of the building across the street; at night, there will be glowing city lights whispering your name– and depending on where you sit, you might even see the Golden Gate bridge or park. This was my first experience of a guilty pleasure at a library… A freaking library!
SFSU’s library is a fifteen minute walk from public transportation. It’s hot, super dusty in times of power outages, lacking the appropriate resources, and filled with people who are not appropriate for library-​ing. Every few seconds of studying will be interrupted by a loud sneeze, sniffling, coughing, cell phone conversation, or conversation in general. Guess what happens when you make weird sounds at Kalmanovitz? Not that it would be necessary, but the security guards will tell you to STFU. You’d probably feel guilty for disturbing the peace before that would ever need to take place, though. I know I did when I sneezed.
The sad part is that they enforce all the rules, including the one about food being prohibited. Sadface. I enjoy eating. I bring a feast with me everywhere I go, it’s inevitable. The first time I came, I brought a pastrami sandwich from Yellow Submarine with chocolate tea and my «Philosophy of Law» book. One of the security guards was circling around the place and looked at me. I looked back at him with «fear of prosecution» written on my face. I wasn’t sure what happened, but he walked away. A few minutes later, he returned to inform me that my sammich had to go away. Boo.
I don’t really have any cool tips because I haven’t explored thoroughly, but everyone else here does! I like to keep a little mystery, I enjoy feeling like I’m in Harry Potter’s world of the unknown.