Lean Library

Name: Lean Library
Rating: 2.7015 (67 reviews)
Author: Lean Library

The Lean Library extension is a free tool which assists your library in delivering their services directly into your research workflow in more ways than one!

Overview

Firefox Add-ons Store

Daily users

8,136 ▼ 430

Data as of 2026-07-25

Rating:

2.70

(67)

Version:

2026.8.2

Last updated: 2026-06-26

Features & Capabilities

The Lean Library extension is a free tool that integrates library services directly into your browser-based research workflow. With Lean Library Access, you’ll receive notifications when a site contains material your library can provide, and a single click redirects you to the content—no paywalls, no multiple logins.

Lean Library Open unlocks instant, legal access to millions of free academic papers, even if you’re not affiliated with an institution. Simply download the extension and select Lean Library Open. Futures is an upcoming service that will bring additional library features into your workflow through the extension.

User Growth & Download Statistics

Add-on Education Content

By:

Daily users:

Rating:

Version:

2026.8.2 Last updated: 2026-06-26

Version code:

6312923

Creation date:

2017-02-22

Risk:

Permissions:

Host permissions:

http://*/*
https://*/*
<all_urls>

Content scripts matches:

*
<all_urls>

Size:

11.87MB

Email:

su*****@leanlibrary.com

URLs:

Website ,Privacy policy

Full description:

Source:

Firefox Add-ons Store

Data ingested on:

2026-07-25

Compare stats and ranking:

Ranking

# 863 ▼ 28

Other rankings

#124 in Other extensions ▼ 3

#1 in library keyword 37

#12 in deliver keyword 5

#23 in lead keyword 14 ▼ 1

#29 in effort keyword 2 ▼ 1

Upgrade to see more rankings

Other platforms

Lean Library (v2026.8.3)

200,000 3.43

(142)

Lean Library (v2026.8.3)

120,416 3.40

(10)

For Developers

Monetize with App Pass Boost with Extension Booster

Contact the developer

Chrome-Stats does not own this Firefox add-on. Please use these information below to contact the Firefox add-on developer.

Developed by:

Lean Library

Firefox Add-ons Store

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/library_access/

Email:

su*****@leanlibrary.com

Website:

https://leanlibrary.com/

Permission Change History

2024-11-11: Version 2024.25.0 → 2024.26.4

Remove Permissions: webRequest

2024-01-30: Version 2023.30.0 → 2024.1.5

Add Permissions: webRequest

2023-10-09: Version 2023.25.2 → 2023.26.2

Remove Permissions: scripting

2023-08-29: Version 2023.4.1 → 2023.23.3

Add Host permissions: http://*/* https://*/* <all_urls>

Add Permissions: alarms activeTab scripting

Remove Permissions: webRequest http://*/* https://*/*

User Reviews

Users find Lean Library very useful for accessing university-licensed papers, but many report severe performance and stability problems. Common complaints: it slows or freezes browsing, runs on non-academic sites with unreliable disable controls, breaks some websites or other extensions, and has a clunkier, more intrusive UI than alternatives like Sciwheel.

Pros

Effectively finds versions of papers accessible through university library accounts, helping access paywalled academic content.
Useful research tool/shortcut to institution resources — saves time when it works.
Some users report reliable access to literature and easy institution sign-in when the extension loads properly.

Cons

Severe performance problems: slows browsing, causes pages or the browser to hang or freeze.
Always-on behavior and poor site controls — runs on non-academic sites, pops up where it shouldn’t, and disable switches are unreliable.
Bugs and instability: breaks some websites and interferes with other extensions; can get stuck on loading or have login/selection issues.
Clunky UI and feature bloat compared with predecessor (Sciwheel): saving citations takes more steps and overlays can be intrusive.

Recent reviews

The extension doesn't work on Windows and doesn't even open on Linux. Sent detailed error reports, never heard back. (The only way it still kinda works is via the old sciwheel extension on Chrome, but there's probably a good chance this will die, too.) SAGE really murdered this once great product. Now I have to switch to something else and lose all of my anntoations. 😭 I hate these careless business people.

by ch*****, 2026-06-05

1) For a closed source extension that should have a very basic function you require too many permissions 2) Even after performance updates its still makes websites (especially websites that this extension has no business running on) extremely laggy even on a high performance PC with Gigabit network speed 3) I would never use this if my university didn't force it on me 4) sci-hub will always remain the most convenient and fastest option, but this extension does it job when sci-hub doesn't have what I'm looking for. But I always keep it disabled otherwise. 5) One serious suggestion would be to allow the user the option to manually trigger the extension on demand only, this will instantly solve the performance issues and privacy concerns. Keep the auto option for people how don't care 6) Privacy statements do not matter, even if you are acting in good faith, data leaks in case of attacks still happen. Best way to protect your customers data is to never even store it.

by an*****, 2026-05-21

View all user reviews ›

Is Lean Library Safe?

Risk impact

Risk impact measures the level of extra permissions an extension has access to. A low risk impact extension cannot do much harms, whereas a high risk impact extension can do a lot of damage like stealing your password, bypassing your security settings, and accessing your personal data. High risk impact extensions are not necessarily malicious. However, if they do turn malicious, they can be very harmful.

Lean Library requires some sensitive permissions that could impact your browser and data security. Exercise caution before installing.

Risk impact analysis details

Critical Grants access to browser tabs, which can be used to track user browsing habits and history, presenting a privacy concern.
Critical ****** ****** ** *** ********* ****** * *********** ******** **** ** ** *** ******* *** ****** **** **** *** ******* *****
High ****** ********* ** * ****** ******** ******** ********** * ******* ******* *****
High ******* ******* **** *** ****** ***** *** ***** ** ******* **** ********* ********* ** * *********** *****

Risk likelihood

Risk likelihood measures the probability that a Firefox add-on may turn malicious. This is determined by the publisher and the Firefox add-on reputation on Firefox Add-ons Store, the amount of time the Firefox add-on has been around, and other signals about the Firefox add-on. Our algorithms are not perfect, and are subject to change as we discover new ways to detect malicious extensions. We recommend that you always exercise caution when installing a Firefox add-on.

Lean Library may not be trust-worthy. Avoid installing if possible unless you really trust this publisher.

Risk likelihood analysis details

High This extension was recently updated in the past month. New updates may not be stable or safe.
High **** ********* *** *** **** ****** ********* ********** *** *** ** ****** ** *****
Medium **** ********* *** *** **** *******
Low **** ********* *** ***** **** **** * ****** **** ***** ********** *** **** ****** ** ** ****** *** *****