Our library on the third floor of 66 Portland Place in London offers access to books, periodicals, and photographs in the RIBA Collections. Our collections range from 15th century illustrated texts to the latest architectural journals and photographs from around the world.
Opening hours
Usual opening hours are:
- Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday: 11am to 5pm
- Tuesday: 12pm to 7pm
- Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and bank holidays: Closed
Ahead of your visit, we encourage you to read our Information for Researchers (PDF) document. For queries or comments on our library service, please email library@riba.org
Upcoming temporary closures
- The Library is closed on Fridays. This is to allow staff to support the collections moves required ahead of the refurbishment of our headquarters, as part of our House of Architecture transformation plans which will make the building more accessible, sustainable and welcoming. These moves may mean that parts of the collection become temporarily unavailable, but we will aim to keep service disruption to a minimum. Please keep an eye on this page for updates on opening times and collection moves
- The Library will close for an all-day staff event on Wednesday 11 December 2024
- The Library will be closed for Christmas from Thursday 19 December 2024 at 5pm, re-opening on Monday 13 January 2025 at 11am
- The Library will temporarily close to the public from 5pm on Thursday April 10 2025 to enable our move out of the building ahead of its refurbishment. We plan to reopen our library service in a new, temporary home in September 2025, with a London location that we hope to be able to confirm soon
New Partnership
An exciting new partnership will ensure that our collections remain accessible while 66 Portland Place is closed. Beginning in Summer 2025, The London Archives in Clerkenwell will host key items from the RIBA Collections alongside their own extensive holdings. Additional resources, such as books and the Robert Elwall Photographs Collection, will be housed at a temporary site in Stockwell, accessible by appointment. Read more on our London Archives partnership.
Admission
Entry is free and everyone is welcome. You will be asked to sign in with a photo ID or RIBA membership card.
Food and drink are not permitted in the reading room and bags must be left in the free lockers provided.
Access to materials
For access to photographs collections, please email photo@riba.org to arrange an appointment.
Many of our books and journals can be browsed on open-access shelving. Closed-access books and journals can be requested on the day of your visit.
For access to our drawings and archives collections, please visit the RIBA Architecture Study Rooms at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.
Accessibility
Step-free access is available by lift to the third floor. Guide dogs are welcome.
Photography, reprographics and Wi-Fi
Photography of books and periodicals is permitted for the purposes of non-commercial research or private study. Please read our personal photography policy before visiting. A remote scanning service is also available, please contact us to enquire.
A scanner and free Wi-Fi are available.
Revisiting the Collections
Our items have been collected and catalogued over almost two centuries, with some items dating back to the 15th century. Some materials and descriptions contain outdated and offensive language or need further contextualising. We are working to address this and to ensure that our collections and descriptions are appropriate to our audiences today.
