Die Bibliothek sammelt Literatur in den Bereichen Mathematik, Physik, Materialwissenschaft, Chemie, Biologie und Kognitionswissenschaft. Der Bestand umfasst überwiegend Monografien, Proceedingsbände werden nur bei besonderer Bedeutung der Konferenz erworben.

Die Bibliothek ist eine Spezialbibliothek mit Sammelschwerpunkten in den jeweiligen Arbeitsgebieten des Instituts: biomedizinische Optik, Biophysik, molekulare Biomechanismen, molekulare Neurobiologie und Zellphysiologie.

The Library and Information Service (BIS) is the joint library for the Max-Planck-Institute for Meteorology (MPI-M) and five institutes of the Center for Earth System Science and Sustainability. The cooperation with some university institutes regarding the library exists since the foundation of the MPI-M in 1975.

The Otto Hahn Library is a special scientific library which provides the institutes on the Max Planck Campus at Göttingen-Nikolausberg with literature and information. Its holdings primarily consist of literature covering the fields of research of the institutes Multidisciplinary Sciences and Dynamics & Self-Organization.

The library of the Max-Planck-Institute for Physics specializes in particle physics, cosmology, field and string theory and mathematical physics. Furthermore, selected books on topics in pure and applied mathematics complete the portfolio.

The Library of the Max-Planck-Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity is a specialized library with a focus on religious studies, anthropology, political science and sociology. The library does not participate in interlibrary loans but serves as a reference library to provide literature and information, mainly to the members of the Institute.

Gemeinsamer Katalog des Max-Planck-Instituts für Biogeochemie und des Max-Planck-Instituts für Chemische Ökologie, Jena.

The scientific research library provides literature and information for both the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics and the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research. The main focus of the collection is set by the research priorities of the departments and is developed according to the research profile.

The Max Planck Institutes are founders of Munich Max Planck Campus for Legal and Economic Research

Gemeinsame Bibliothek beider Stuttgarter MPIs

Collection of 949 texts about mysticism and asceticism, written by 414 12th to 18th century authors from the benedictines' abbey St. Walburg in Eichstätt, published between the 16th and the 19th century. Single works have been digitally facsimilized and are available in pdf format. Most texts are written in German, only 10% are in Latin. Nearly half of the works are translations, which accounts for the high degree of cultural exchange between Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal during the 17th and 18th centuries. St. Walburg Abbey is one of the few monasteries that have survived secularization. The monastery's library, the traces of which reach back to the second half of the 15th century, has been preserved completely and is unique regarding its wholeness.