Day-long membership costs just £10; week-long membership is £25. Sign up to become a full member within a month of your trial membership and we will refund you its cost.

What can I do at the DEI in one day?

We offer a beautiful, historic reading, writing and meeting space right in the centre of Exeter, with magnificent early 19th century galleried libraries for research, reading and relaxation. Here are a few ways you could spend your time here:

– Bring your laptop and take advantage of our high-speed fibre Wi-Fi to work online;
– Book a Research Appointment in advance and view a particular item in our Heritage or Modern South West collections;
– Use our computers to search a range of databases, such as Ancestry or The British Newspaper Archive;
– Browse the daily papers over a cup of tea in the cosy, wood-paneled Courtenay Room;
– Take a look at the large range of periodicals and journals we subscribe to, including New Scientist, The Literary Review, and History Today;
– Bring your own lunch to enjoy in our tranquil courtyard garden;
– Meet our warm and friendly community of fellow readers and writers.

See a full list of the benefits of DEI membership here.

There is no need to book a trial membership in advance – you can just turn up on the day – although if you want to view an item from our Heritage collection, you will need to get in touch a week beforehand.

If you have a query about any aspect of DEI membership, please contact our Membership Officer, Carrie, on [email protected].