Free In N Out Burgers for Riverside Kids - Here’s How It Works!
Did you know that In N Out has a fun program for children called “Cover to Cover” where they partner with local libraries to provide free hamburgers and cheeseburgers for children as an incentive for reading?
It’s not very complicated, but when I mentioned this program on Instagram, I got quite a few messages from parents who are always a little confused about how it works. So here’s all the info I could think of, if you’re looking for extra details.
This program goes on throughout the country (where they have In N Out locations) - here’s all the info on how it works specifically for our Riverside, California, area libraries.
Riverside’s In-N-Out Cover to Cover Library Program runs from March 7 - April 18, 2026, for ages 4-12.
Step One: Read!
As a reminder, this program is only for children ages 4-12.
The first step of this reading program is, naturally, to read! 5 books or 300 minutes = 1 burger.
There are no rules on types of books read - they can be library books, Libby ebooks or audiobooks, or books you already own, and the child can read to themselves or you can read aloud to them. (If you’re looking for good books to read, Everyday Reading is one of my favorite sources for both children and adults.)
Kids can earn up to 3 hamburgers or cheeseburgers per library system (3 burgers = reading 15 books / 900 minutes)
If your child reads a lot of picture books, it’s probably easier to track number of books. If they like long chapter books or audiobooks, tracking minutes may be easier.
As you’ll see below, you’re going to need a list of the books your child read or how many minutes they read. You can certainly stop by the library first and pick up a book log, or log into the Beanstack app (for Riverside County Libraries only) and track it there, but to save yourself a second trip to the library, it’s probably easiest to just snap a picture of each book you read, or jot down a list on your phone or a piece of paper.
Step Two: Head to the Library - Riverside City and County are both participating!
Riverside has two library systems - the Riverside Public Library, which features 8 branches only in the city of Riverside, and the Riverside County Library System, which runs throughout the whole county from here to the Arizona border, with a few locations near the City of Riverside.
The two systems operate totally separately from each other, with different library card accounts, different web sites, different catalogs of books, and different policies. You also can’t return books from one system to the other. (Thankfully, both systems have a “no late fee” policy!)
It’s a little confusing at first, but once you get it straight, it can be really nice to be able to visit two different libraries, since they have different activities and a different selection of books.
Best of all, for programs like In N Out Cover to Cover (or Summer Reading), you can participate in both of them for double the rewards!
So if you visit one location from the Riverside Public Library list (like La Sierra Library) and then one from the Riverside County Library system list (like Woodcrest Library), your child would get six free burgers in all.
Riverside Public Library (city) locations
In general, Riverside Public Library locations are open Tuesday - Sunday from 10am - 6pm. (Closed Mondays). The Main Library and Eastside have slightly different hours.
SPC. Jesus S. Duran Eastside Library at Lincoln Park
Riverside County Library System Locations Near Riverside
There are Riverside County branches all over the county - here are some of the locations closest to the city of Riverside:
Louis Robidoux Library in Jurupa Valley
The Glen Avon Libraryis also in Jurupa Valley.
The Eastvale Library is located on the campus of Eleanor Roosevelt High School, so it’s only open in the afternoons/evenings and on weekends.
El Cerrito Library is in the Corona area
You can find all of the Riverside County Library locations here.
Other Library Systems Participating in Cover to Cover
As I mentioned before, there are other libraries participating in Cover to Cover, not just our two Riverside systems. Here are a few other systems you could check out, if you live closer to one of them.
Step Three: At the library (or maybe before), record the time your child read or their books on a paper reading log or the Beanstack App.
The two library systems have two different methods of recording books/minutes read:
Paper Log for Riverside Public Library (city) locations - Arlanza, Arlington, Casa Blanca, Eastside, La Sierra, Main, Marcy, Orange Terrace)
Riverside Public Library wants you to fill out a paper book log that they give you at the library in person. In my opinion, this is the faster, easier option, so I’m personally pleased this is the direction they’ve gone!
You can either:
Make two visits: one to pick up the book log and take it home and keep track of it, and another to return it and get the free burger cards.
Jot down your own list of books/minutes at home (on a piece of paper or on your phone) and then plan to spend a few minutes at the library transferring it in person... if your children can write themselves, this is a great chance for them to sit at the little tables and have some ownerships in the process.
The paper log is very simple to complete - write down book titles and then sign it as the parent, or mark off how much time they read in 15 minute increments.
(A third option would be just going to the library and sitting in the children’s section and reading a big stack of picture books from the shelf, to get all of it done in one go!)
Beanstack App for Riverside County Library System (Woodcrest, Louis Robidoux, Glen Avon, Highgrove, Eastvale, Norco, Home Gardens, El Cerrito, Mead Valley)
Riverside County Library locations strongly prefer that you complete the book log on the Beanstack App or web site, rather than the paper log. (The librarian at Woodcrest said if we didn’t do the app ourselves, she’d have to input all of them herself into Beanstack anyways, so it’s courteous to do it yourself.)
I recommend filling out the app/web site at home before you go if you have a chance, as it can be a little tedious. However, you can fill it out at the library while your child reads, plays, or attends a story time or other activity.
(I do want to mention that I have had many conversations with librarians over the years about this recent transition from paper logs to the Beanstack app/web site (both for this and summer reading). I think it’s a terrible change, frankly. II’d be happy to have both options available, but I dislike the way they’ve often forced us into the online systems only.
Before the app options, my children used to sweetly write their own lists of books they read - even in their scribbly writing - and had some ownership in the process. When they require these programs to happen online instead, I need to spend more time on my phone logging 60 books!
As a result, I end up taking some shortcuts on the apps (see below) to save time but it means the kids are pretty disconnected from the process. Like, they enjoy the free In N Out but kind of miss that it’s connected to the reading process. Unfortunately, usually the individual librarians have no control over these changes - it’s some decision made by upper management.)
Okay, off my soapbox!
How to Use Beanstack for the County Library - Here are the directions for completing it on the iPhone app.
Use this link to join the Riverside County Library System’s program. Create an account and log in - one email works for all your kids, but they’ll each need their own account.
Be sure you sign up for the challenge first before logging books, otherwise they won’t count:
Click on Discover (bottom on the right). It will probably say No Challenges Found. Scroll down to More Challenges and click on 2026 In N Out Cover to Cover, and Join Challenge. (If you click on Home, you should now see it under Current Challenges).
If you can’t find it, click on Community and make sure you’re signed in under the Riverside County Library System, and also make sure your child’s age is listed between 4-12.
After your child is signed up for the challenge in the app, log the books:
Click on the purple Plus sign near the bottom of the screen, then tap Reading. There may be a slide that pops up saying Choose Readers. If you have more than one child, you can select all of their names at this point, which will save you time if you all read a book together. Then hit Choose Readers at the bottom to continue.
Now you’ll be at the Select a Title page. Here’s where you have a decision to make - does it matter to you that your child gets “credit” for individual book titles?
Yes, I want to log individual book titles:If you have one child who faithfully read 5-15 books just for this challenge, you may want to enter in each individual book title. They’ll have a record of those books on the app, and it could feel meaningful to enter it all in that way.
Type in the book title in the search bar and click on the title of the book. On the Confirm Title page, I recommend unchecking “Track Progress” so you don’t have to mess with the page numbers, then hit Save.
There will be 3 purple buttons that pop up - choose Quick Complete.
That logged the first book, and if you click on Home, you should now see that under the In N Out challenge, 1/15 books are completed.
Repeat for the remaining books (up to 15).
No, I don’t care about tracking, I just want to be done with this as soon as possible: If you don’t care about logging individual book titles, click Log Without A Title and when it asks How Many Books Did You Complete? enter 15, and you’ll be done. Personally, we read tons of books in our house so I have no doubt that my children have all read 15 books recently, and I feel comfortable with this much faster option.
Step Four: Get your child’s free burger cards at the library. You can get up to 3 cards per child, if they read 15 books.
Once the paper book log or Beanstack record is complete, you can ask a librarian and they’ll get you your free card(s). Your child can receive up to 3 free burger cards per library system.
Make sure you do this step - don’t just take the book log to In N Out!
Step Five: Go to In N Out for a free hamburger, cheeseburger, or grilled cheese!
As long as your child is there, these are really easy to redeem. Remember: you have to get the little plastic gift cards from the library first - don’t just show up at In N Out with a book list.
Your child must be present to redeem the free burger cards at In N Out.
The cards never expire - you can use them even after April 18 when the library program ends.
You do not need to buy anything else (though of course, you can).
You can even get free cocoa too if you save the free burger cards for a literal rainy day!