Where do you use your laptop in public, other than a coffee shop?

June 24, 2023 6:59 AM

I enjoy working on projects with my laptop in places outside my home. I like the background noise and the change of scenery to help keep me focused and break up the monotony. The only problem is, it's hard to find a good place to use my laptop in public. The obvious answer is a coffee shop, but I often like to do this in the evenings and at night, and coffee shops usually close before then. A library is another obvious answer, but likewise, the hours for the ones near me are limited, and I find it a bit tricky to see my screen because they keep the lights so bright. So aside from a coffee shop or library, are there public places where you like to sit on your laptop for a couple hours and browse the web or work on stuff?
posted by nathandyer to Technology (23 answers total)

Some bars are totally cool with this behavior, especially of the beer garden variety. (Ymmv, of course, and maybe you don't want to be around alcohol.)
posted by branca at 7:16 AM on June 24, 2023 [6 favorites]

Some restaurants won't mind, especially if they're not busy and you tip well. You can look for a makerspace or co-working space near you. I've seen people on laptops in the dining area of my local grocery store and at the Starbucks inside of Target.
posted by mezzanayne at 7:31 AM on June 24, 2023 [4 favorites]

Both of the above answers, with a side order of weekdays, weeknights, and mid-afternoons have been my best times for this.
posted by cupcakeninja at 7:33 AM on June 24, 2023

The Barnes & Noble bookstore near me has seating where you could work with a laptop. On the other hand, I think most of these types of stores would close at 9:00 PM, so that might be too early for you.
posted by alex1965 at 8:40 AM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

I would look into informal co-working spaces in your area, maybe associated with your industry. Start by just googling "free co-working city" and browse past the first page of ads. As commercial office space is thinning out, there are now several in my local area associated with tech incubators where you can sign up and take a spot for free if they aren't full. It's a good way to meet people too if you're used to working at home
posted by JZig at 8:42 AM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

McDonald's, Dunkin, and other fast food places have wifi. Many libraries leave wifi on at night. If it's a bar or restaurant, order stuff, check to see if it's okay.

There's a toll road near me, and the employee/ service road to the service area is close. I've gone there occasionally.
posted by theora55 at 8:58 AM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

I go to a Bob Evans every Friday night and do my lesson plans for the next week. I tip really well and have gotten to know the servers and managers. They always say see you next Friday.

So I'll second a restaurant.

ETA: I eat dinner while there
posted by kathrynm at 8:59 AM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

With the proliferation of cheap wifi, this question is really just “what places are open during the hours I’d like to work?” The vast majority of places now have either public wifi or private wifi that they’re willing to share access to with friendly customers. But there still aren’t a lot of places open at 9:45pm. That’s the bottleneck. The answer is, in short, places that serve alcohol: bars, restaurants, or combinations thereof. I used to do this all the time when I was younger (which was also when it was less common to have wifi, so I’d bet it’s even more common now). If there’s a fast food place that keeps its dining room open, that works too. And of course, if you’re willing to sit in your car to work, the parking lot of any place that offers free wifi during the day is an option. I used to set to shop in the parking lot of Panera fairly often, where I’d usually be joined by several other cars.
posted by kevinbelt at 9:05 AM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

Fast casual places like Panera are great for this. In my area they are open until 9pm, and dead those last couple of hours. And they still do the coffee/pastry thing so you don't have to buy a whole meal.
posted by kimdog at 9:05 AM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

Based on what I see at my workplace: public gardens. Many public gardens have free wifi and some sort of seating - picnic tables, etc.
posted by sciencegeek at 9:25 AM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

University library - maybe longer hours and less bright?
posted by rglass at 9:27 AM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

It's a little weird, but some larger grocery stores have cafe areas to sit and eat in and have wifi. Also, some mall food courts.
posted by roaring beast at 12:38 PM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

Seconding rglass, if you have a local university then the library may stay open 24/7 for some or all of the year. Some places may do ID checks but some won't. Even if you are asked to leave you won't get into trouble.
posted by biffa at 1:38 PM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

In addition to university libraries, you might want to look into local university student centers. One of our local university student centers is open until midnight during the fall and spring semesters and they don't check IDs because there is a restaurant and food court inside. The hours are more limited on breaks and in the summer.
posted by cali59 at 1:49 PM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

Seconding roaring beast. Grocery store café areas are the best!! I literally did all of my studying for Step 2 of the medical boards there.
posted by 8603 at 2:05 PM on June 24, 2023

If you're in a busy city with multiple ones to cycle through, you could also probably get away with occasionally squatting in hotel lobbies.
posted by smirkette at 4:19 PM on June 24, 2023 [2 favorites]

Seconding bars; I used to take my laptop to a local dive, set up on a back table, nurse a few beers, occasionally get some fries, and work until closing. The wait staff were fine with me since it was never busy enough that anyone waited for a table, and it was much less interrupting than a coffee shop. I tipped well, made no trouble, and made the place look not totally empty-- win win!
posted by The otter lady at 5:59 PM on June 24, 2023

Some laundromats are open late (or never close) and offer wifi.
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:00 PM on June 24, 2023

As long as you bring your own internet, I'd nth local college buildings. They don't typically provide guest wifi though.

This won't help with your nighttime needs, but I've spent pleasant days working from art museums. Work for an hour, check out an exhibit for 10-15 minutes, repeat until it's lunch time, eat at the cafe, then back to work.

Since Covid, there's been a dramatic fall in night night options for anything near me. Even a lot of bars are closing at 10 and the ones that aren't are chaotic and noisy to the point of not being a good work area. Places like McDonalds close their seating areas pretty early and go to just drive through. We're down to pretty much just Waffle House for late night dining.
posted by Candleman at 7:28 PM on June 24, 2023

Ideas: lobbies for office buildings/hotels, and museums. A few months ago while in SF, my rental apartment had a power outage so I went downtown and worked from the fancy lobby of a sleek highrise building that my cousin worked in. The desk attendants didn't seem to have a problem with it. It was nice to have the excuse of my cousin, but probably not necessary. Then, after lunch, I walked a few blocks to SFMOMA and explained my situation to the admission folks. They showed me to a lovely, quiet, library/media room where I even had my own desk to work at. I worked there the whole afternoon and didn't even have to pay admission because that floor is free of charge. The few people who wandered in assumed I was museum staff and I loved it! Both places had free public WiFi.
posted by oxisos at 7:51 PM on June 24, 2023 [4 favorites]

I pair my laptop with my phone and go to a park to sit on a blanket under a tree. Shade makes the screen visible, and just doing email or whatnot takes very little mobile data.
posted by unlapsing at 7:51 PM on June 24, 2023 [3 favorites]

The lobby of my local YMCA often has people sitting at the tables using their laptops, or sometimes in the small meeting rooms there.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:56 PM on June 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

Museums usually have wifi. Get a membership, hang out in quiet, air-conditioned pleasant spaces.
posted by theora55 at 12:20 PM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]