# Handy Library Manager Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is Handy Library Manager the right Library Automation solution for you? Explore 18 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/44288/Handy-Library-Manager/reviews --- Handy Library Manager 4.7 (18) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/44288/Handy-Library-Manager/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Reviews of Handy Library Manager Ease of use 4.5 Customer Service 4.7 ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-18 of 18 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use JH Jan H. Library Database Manager Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Good Job, PrimaSoft" April 29, 2021 5.0 Only been using Handy Library for the length of the free trial, and just bought the program a week or so ago. Have yet to have in-person meetings, so have not actually used the program "under fire". But thorough testing suggests things will go smootly Pros We have a small non-profit organization with a library of about 1250 items - books, magazines and videos. I was able to completely customize Handy Library Manger to our simplified needs. Check Out and Check In require only one or two scans of the barcodes. It doesn't seem to mind if you start with the borrower or the library item. Entry of new borrowers or library items can be done individually or in groups from an Excel spreadsheet. Managing the loans also seems easy, with the option to create personalized reminder emails. And if a change gets made in the item title (like correcting a typo) while the book is checked out, the changed name can still be found by the Check In process. Cons It has been somewhat of a challenge getting the software personalized for our club, but we got it done. There is a very complex Operating Manual that could use a search routine, but we got around that using Google searches. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager My experience with PrimaSoft's technical support for Small Library Organizer Pro was so positive that I wanted to continue working with them, knowing they would work with me until any problem was 100% solved. With a reasonable price, that was enough for me. Switched from [Handy Library Manager](https://www.capterra.com/p/44288/Handy-Library-Manager/) Small Library was getting old, and was very difficult for non-computer-oriented people to use - to the extent the library committee refused to keep using it. Review Source YL Yael L. School Psychologist Primary/Secondary Education Used the software for: 2+ years ### "PGCPS Psychological Services" January 27, 2023 5.0 We have had a great experience with Handy Library Manager. We have the cloud based with Primasoft hosting our library, as well as the lifetime upgrades. These features have been extremely worth it as we are able to keep our software current, access technical support when needed, and access the information from anywhere despite limitations with our own school district's server use. Pros Handy Library Manager has been very easy to use. We very much appreciate the extensive tutorials on the website, which easily got us up and running with basic and even some advanced features. It has revolutionized the way that our materials are managed and we have experienced less loss of our supplies. Our staff really like the ability to look up the availability of supplies through the online searchable database. Cons If you are not familiar with sql it can be tricky to know how to create a report that is organized and set up the way you want it, but customer service has been very helpful when we have asked what sql language to use. Review Source PP Pat P. Media Specialist Civic & Social Organization Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Library Manager for small libraries " July 11, 2023 5.0 We were using the old card and pocket system to check out books. It was very time consuming. Using the automated import has saved us a tremendous amount of time. Pros It was very easy to install. Also very user friendly. I also like the support on the web. It helped me to make barcodes and spine labels. I was recommend this to any small library for ease of use and install. Cons Support is to high prices for my small budget. When I would rather buy books for my library. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager It was supposed to the one to use for small libraries. Review Source AT Amanda T. SecondaryTeacher/Librarian Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Still Happy" July 2, 2021 5.0 Our experience with the Handy Library Manager is that the software actually promoted our community Library to become known as "very professional". Our clients love the fact that they can be contacted by email, that they can become a member with a Barcode ( just like the big library in town) and that they feel " looked after". We can't do without this product as it truly has given our small town an edge of class without costing us a fortune. Pros I simply love the Handy Library Manager. Right from the beginning, when I first started to search online for a; Simple, Efficient, Accurate, Reliable and Cost Effective management program, I have been super impressed and happy with my decision to purchase this software. The Handy Library Manager is a compact and streamlined managing system which is easy to navigate and simple to use. The added HELP Tab directs you straight to the problem or issue you are facing and clearly ( with clear diagrams) helps you to work through your problems or issues or questions you may have. Additionally, the tutorial HELP is so quick and easy to learn that you will find yourself mastering the program within minutes. I love it! It has helped me to start our community library without a huge cost or investment in software that you would need a Technology degree to use. The Handy Library Manager has been the starting point of our community Library and 4 years later I am still happy with my choice to press BUY online. Cons As a small community Library, I feel that there is very little to change or add in the program as it suits what we want. Review Source DH Don H. Technology Specialist Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Small school library use software" November 12, 2022 4.0 Pros It's easy to setup, easy to use and reasonable pricing. Cons I would love if barcode generator is available. By having barcode generator will allow us to put the barcode on the book and then enter the item at a later time. Also phone support is not as great. I tried to call during work hour to have support but no answer. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager Pricing and ease of use is the main reason. Review Source Response from PrimaSoft PC January 10, 2023 Many users like our technical support. The phone support is not provided the way some users would like. But from our experience, we know that we can include much better answers when we receive email questions. We have extra time to think about the best response and provide customized responses with images or links to help topics. Barcoding in advance. You can do it. We offer a free license for our Advantage Organizer. With this program, you can predefine barcodes and barcode labels and print any labels before entering book information into Handy Library. We also offer many PDF files with different label sizes and predefined barcodes that users can print and apply to books. The free pdf files are listed on our site, and custom pdf labels we create for users with the support. MG Melissa G. Librarian Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "For a small library (approx 5k books) it gets the job done. We have two rooms on two systems. " September 21, 2023 5.0 We have achieved organization of our books. For 2024 we need to get on the web so our congregants can search for books. Pros The organization of our books. I like being able to find books by ISBN number and have some of the book descriptions filled automatically. Cons I'm sure there are more features than we know of that might be useful to us. We are thinking of upgrading to 4.3 to use the cloud but we have not made that move yet. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager I don't know Review Source BB Bob B. Librarian Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Just what we needed and more" March 20, 2021 5.0 Overall the product is easy to learn even for non techies. We have volunteer assistants who picked up the operation very quickly. Specialized reports and labels are easy to create and modify. A well thought out product that would certainly serve many clubs, schools and other organizations quite well. Pros Very easy to learn the features and options and integrate them into our needs. The processes are very intuitive and the on-line documentation usually provides several options for completing a task. Support from the vendor has been excellent when needed but was really only sought on a few occasions when we installed "Handy" and went through our initial loads and conversion. Our needs were modest and we got a lot more product for the money with PrimaSoft. Release upgrades have integrated very smoothly and added some new complimentary features. Hats off to Marek, Andre' and the entire staff. Cons Nothing stands out as a weakness or least liked. There are so many strong points for our small club library that currently serves approx 250 members and 1600 volumes of books, videos and magazines. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager We had a limited budget and didn't need a lot of complex processing found in some other products. Ease of use and a short learning curve were two key factors. All this while meeting our needs made the purchase decision quite easy. We are very glad that we chose Handy Library Manager. Review Source RN Ranya N. Ecumenical Christian Education NGO Libraries Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Blessed to have Handy Library Manager" September 22, 2023 5.0 ExcellentProfessional Pros All its features, how user friendly it is, how it can handle a lot of information and then simply categorize them in a fruitful way Cons Nothing. All is excellent. Thank you so much Review Source SK Sian K. Librarian Museums and Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Good value for money with responsive customer care" March 19, 2021 4.0 My organisation is a charity, and I am a volunteer setting up and running this small library on my own. This product, which I have now been using for about five years, is ideal for such a situation and meets all our needs for the moment. Pros Very straightforward to use, even for those without IT expertise. Quick responses to support queries & easy upgrades. Autocataloguing works well. Added bonus is that Primasoft make it available on the internet for a small library without a network server. Cons The online help pages need a search function. Autocataloguing does not transfer all the fields (e.g. date of publication). The catalogue does not accept two different editions of the same book with identical titles. Review Source Response from PrimaSoft PC March 25, 2021 Auto-cataloging finds information listed on the web and then transfers data into the catalog according to the data mapping definition. I would suggest reviewing Field Mapping content and add missing lines. JC Janet C. Communications Officer Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Canberra Quilters Library" January 6, 2023 4.0 The product has been easy to learn. We have multiple volunteer assistants who picked up the operation very quickly. We are a not-for-profit quilting guild with a library of approximately 2000 items for members only. The ability to email overdue reminders has been a great help. Pros Easy to learn the software and support from the vendor has always been helpful and prompt. We had only a limited budget and needed to replace our previous legacy library system. The swap over was smooth and again support was prompt and helpful when requested. We also appreciate that we can have our catalogue hosted by Primasoft with a link available on our website so members can browse the catalogue online. Cons Nothing stands out as a weakness or least liked. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager The low cost and the ability to handle our library without re-labelling and multiple process changes. Ease of use was a key factor. We are very happy with our choice of Handy Library Manager. Review Source JS Jason S. Director of Technology Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Excellent Product with Excellent Customer Service" March 19, 2021 5.0 Great! We are so happy to have a fully functional library at a decent cost. Thank you Primasoft and \[SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN\] for developing this product! Pros It is comprehensive, intuitive, and easy to use. There are great help articles and great customer service with \[SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN\] at Primasoft! Cons Not too many cons. However, it is not web based so need to have it installed on a local computer. I chose the server to easily remote in. Took sometime to get it installed but \[SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN\] helped me out every step of the way. Alternatives considered [Follett Destiny Library Manager](https://www.capterra.com/p/8972/Destiny-Library-Manager/) Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager Cost mainly. Review Source NM Nicole M. Volunteer Librarian Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Very helpful Customer Service" February 12, 2024 4.0 Handy Library Manager has been a great addition to the library. It has made adding books and borrowers a breeze and helps keeps things organized! Pros Very helpful customer service whenever we have questions or issues. Space to input lots of information regarding each book added. User friendly! Cons Yearly cost for the Auto-Catalog feature. Review Source LG Linda G. Administrator Libraries Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Awesome Support" June 8, 2021 5.0 The overall experience has been wonderful. The system has so many options and we are just transitioning a manual library (old school) to its first bar code system. \[SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN\] patience with tech support is never-ending and appreciated so much! Pros The features most important to us as the library for a homeowners association were barcoding, easy checkin/out, and having a printed receipt. Cons Unfortunately our Admin Team has very limited IT experience, and nothing in depth regarding setup etc. Therefore, some things that more experienced users would understand were more difficult for us to understand the concept, and thus implement without lots of questions. However, \[SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN\] has been so helpful and patient with my basic questions and explaining how it all works together. He is a saint. Reason for choosing Handy Library Manager features and price Review Source KK Kama K. Library Volunteer Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affordable library software, good choice for small libraries!" March 19, 2021 5.0 The ease of use is top-notch. This application helps us to run our small club library, with 3000 items, and 100 members. All club members can easily check books out and in independently. Pros Our library is run by volunteer staff. We needed the library system that is easy to implement and use. Handy Library is the software that offers this and more. Cons Auto-cataloging requires support payment. I would like to have this feature for free Review Source EB Elizabeth B. Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Great Library Software" April 19, 2017 5.0 My experience with this software has been great so far. I haven't had almost any issues as this program is easy to use- you just have to spend some time learning a few things and you'll be good to go. The few times that I had an issue, I emailed Primasoft's support and they replied very quickly with the solution to my problem. I'm really glad that I purchased this software and I highly recommend it to any librarians as this would be a great program for anyone to use, even beginners. This program serves our church very well! Pros Good price, easy to use, 30 day trial version that you can download Review Source AC Andy C. Used the software for: ### "Great Library Automation Software" February 9, 2017 5.0 I strongly recommend Handy Library Manager to all librarians. It has almost all functions a library might need and some more. Yet, it is easy to use and flexible. We never had any run-time errors so, it seems very solid. We are using it on a local area network and running it on multiple computers. The performance is quite good and we have more than 20,000 books. On rare occasion when we run into some issues we email the support and get the response very quickly. Since we may need to access it in the future from some remote locations we are planning to test the Cloud version of Handy Library Manager. Pros flexibility and ease of use Cons not designed specifically for schools (a minor issue) Review Source GF George F. Used the software for: ### "A good balance between power and simplicity" February 5, 2017 5.0 Price was right, and the software had all features we needed. Handy Library Manager provides an easy-to-use graphical interface that can easily be taught to the new librarian in a single teaching session. I felt that Handy Library Manager program really struck a good balance between power and simplicity. Also, the good thing about the software is that the database is easy to maintain. I don't hesitate to recommend this program for its affordability and for its capabilities. Pros reasonable price, good balance between ease of use and functionality Cons you have to buy a bar code scanner from some other source Review Source LR Laura R. volunteer Arts and Crafts Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Great Library Tool for our Quilting Guild" February 3, 2017 4.0 I received the Handy Library Manager for our non-profit Quilting Guild association: Lakeview Quilters' Guild in Houston Texas. I was tasked with finding a new library software product that met all of the guild's needs, with limited budget. My main reason for buying software from Primasoft was the price was right, and the software had all the required features. We have around 350 members of the guild with close to 2000 quilting specific books for our members to check out at our monthly meetings. We needed to have a piece of software that kept track of what was checked out, by whom, and how many were checked out by that member. If a book was overdue, be able to send reminders to the members to return the book. Handy Library provides all this and more. We have volunteers run our library, with a new librarian each year. They may not be computer literate, as their expertise is in quilting. Handy provides an easy to use Graphical interface that can easily be taught to the new librarian in a single teaching session. I would recommend this software for any non-profit or small group needing Library software Pros Ease of use Review Source Similar Products Featured