SmartCape internet access: start with your City library card

Cape Town residents interested in SmartCape internet access should begin with public-library membership, according to the City's registration guidance.

The official instructions say to take an identity document and proof of residence to the library front desk when signing up. Members receive a library card.

The next step is to ask the librarian on duty to activate the bar-coded card for SmartCape registration. Library membership and the computer-registration step are therefore separate parts of the published process.

At a SmartCape computer, users select the registration option and provide the requested details, username and password. The City advises asking the librarian for help if needed.

Before travelling, check the chosen library's opening hours and available computer arrangements. The general registration page does not confirm that a workstation will be available at a particular branch or time.

This guide reflects existing service information checked on 8 November 2026. No library card was activated, account created or internet session tested. It does not announce a new facility or promise a booking.

Archive photograph: the computer lab at Cape Town Central Library on 29 August 2025. This is not a current availability check or an identification of the users pictured. Photo: Derek J Moore / Wikimedia Commons. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Computer_Lab_-_Cape_town_Central_Library.jpg . Licence: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Cropped and resized for display.