Alexandria vs Surpass

Simple Little Library System

Mandarin

Surpass

Surpass is a library automation software designed to help public, corporate, church, museum, and school libraries handle cataloging and circulation of books. 

Effortless library management. Intuitive, affordable, and designed to keep print and digital collections organised.

Mandarin is a web-based library management system targeting smaller private & public facilities with support for cataloguing, circulation & inventory management

Alexandria is a centralized library software solution for managing and cataloging libraries, giving patrons the ability to search resources from any location

Barcode/Ticket Scanning

Barcoding/RFID

Catalog Creation

Catalog Management

Church Libraries

Circulation Management

Content Management

Data Storage Management

Fee Collection

Inventory Management

OPAC

Patron Management

Periodicals Management

Private Libraries

Public Libraries

Reserve Shelf Management

Resource Management

School Libraries

Search/Filter

Self Check-In/Check-Out

Serials Management

Tagging

User Management

Alexandria

Web-based

iPad

Android

Windows

iPhone

Basic

Librarian

The beautiful thing is that the software is hosted by the manufacturer, removing the need for installation, upgrades and security.

We we made subscription, Alexandria takes care of the rest.

Security and Access Control

Pricing

Small Business

Mid-size Business

COMPanion Corporation

Follett Destiny Library Manager

Follett Destiny Library Manager is a web-based software designed to help K-12 schools manage and record their library's available inventory on a centralized platform. With Follett Destiny Discover, students can receive access to various print and digital resources including audiobooks, subscription databases and more.

Purchasing Clerk

The software did everything we needed and the customer service was quick and helpful.  

Managing Librarian

Surpass has been easy to use, has great customer service, and offers a great value that fits within my organization's budget.

Access Controls/Permissions

Activity Dashboard

Alerts/Notifications

Barcode Recognition

Content Library

Customizable Branding

Customizable Reports

Data Import/Export

Digital Asset Management

Equipment Tracking

Full Text Search

Historical Reporting

Law Libraries

Online Catalog

Records Management

Reporting & Statistics

Reservations Management

Self Service Portal

Third-Party Integrations

Proprietary

Koha ILS

ResourceMate

Congregational 

Small 

Large

District

Premier

Community Engagement Technician

My overall experience with Surpass has been positive. While there is a learning curve, the system is secure, customizable, and effective for library management, book cataloging, and tracking both circulating and non-circulating materials.

Library Volunteer

I especially appreciate the flexibility in customizing records, which allows me to highlight important details and ensure users can easily locate what they need.

I helped catalog an entire library using old barcodes, new barcodes and everything in between.  

The only thing that comes to mind is that the user interface in the basic version we use is visually a bit dated, but this has no impact on functionality.

Alliance for Children, Education Stars Program Director

The online catalog projects a professional image and gives patrons a highly functional way to search, select, and place holds on materials.

Navigating around the site is smooth and intuitive—the menus are well-structured, and search features are responsive and accurate.

Volunteer

Surpass Software was a perfect match for our organization to automate our 5000 book library.  

Sometimes requested changes are not accommodated because we are a minority in the way we use Surpass (toy library for a non-profit rather than a traditional library).  

president

Their responsiveness to questions, concerns and needs is really exceptional.

librarian

Not only are there instructional videos on Youtube, but I can chat online to get help with a LIVE ASSISTANT without going through a bot first.

Digital Library Administrator

They have a litany of YouTube videos that cover many of their features of their software, they are usually only about 3 minutes each making them easy to watch

The ease of learning the program was so helpful as I trained others to help.

Coordinator Information and Resources

Sometimes having to type the exact title to find the book in the Resource list.

Librarian Specialist

There is a lot of good options for adding items for our users to find, and it is easy to add them.

Any time I have had a problem they have helped me fix it.

We have recommended this software to other non-profit lending libraries that have reached out to us to find out how we developed such an amazing catalog.  

As a new librarian of a small school library, I feel that the it was easy to master and to comprehend the basic functions of the program. And most importantly, the service is fabulous.

IT Director

From implementation, administration, to end users everything has been top notch.  

Surpass was implemented with employees at a Retirement Village but the library volunteer residents have learned the parts of it they need to on a day to day basis quite easily. Since it's based on the Cloud it can be accessed anywhere at any time.

Media Specialist

She was able to fix my issues and was so patient and understanding with me.

Library Team lead

Surpass CL is perfect for our small to medium church library.

It is hard for me to think of what I like least about Surpass. When there is a situation that could be improved, I can suggest a change.

There are some confusions with how things are separated into each category.

Management is simple as well as easy to customize.

It's very flexible - you can add as little or as much detail as you like.

Surpass is constantly using customer feedback to improve their product.

Church Librarian

Support has proven to be very helpful and able to hlep

Media Aide

Still learning the system and wish there was a new user training already set up.

It's also quick and simple to catalogue new entries.

Manager 

It has allowed us to dramatically reduce the amount of time and effort needed to design and deploy tests and assessments, while also providing us with detailed and insightful analytics.

Surpass catalog is easy to use and is as good as far more expensive library systems.

Library Assistant

One of the features i really enjoy with Surpass is the excellent customer service. Whenever I have an issue they are always available to help and resolve the issue.

Firstly, it allows us to quickly create and deploy tests and assessments on a variety of topics, meaning that we can get feedback quickly and accurately.

They respond within minutes to my questions, and are extremely helpful and patient.

I would have left this blank because I have nothing that I didn’t like.

Media Clerk

The learning curve from the windows based system to the cloud based system is small and there are some features in the cloud that we didn't have before that are GREAT!

Director of Library Services

The customer service has been astounding.  

Computer Specialist

The software/hardware combination of the old system was on its last legs, and the initial software developer was  very slow to respond to upgrading to their newer system.   With Surpass they gave me a demo of which I tested their import feature and it was extremely easy to import everything I intended without the need for support on that feature.

Volunteer Librarian

I have especially enjoyed creating nested Explore buttons for our unique online catalog.

Alexandria vs Surpass Comparison (2026)

Alexandria

Surpass

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives