The holdings of the University Library have been developed to serve research and teaching at the university. The library houses special collections such as photos, manuscripts, newspapers and maps. It participates in BIBSYS, which runs a shared database for universities and colleges in Norway. A variety of databases and digital journals, to which the library subscribes, are also searchable online via the university network.

The revision of the standard Norwegian dictionaries Bokmålsordboka and Nynorskordboka is a 5 year co-operation between the University of Bergen and The Language Council of Norway. The Department of Linguistic, Literary and Aesthetic Studies at the University of Bergen employs a staff of lexicographers currently working on the revision. The project is conducted in a co-operation between the University Library, currently housing the project, and the Department. Important partners at the University of Bergen are the CLARINO project, especially the INESS and Corpuscle resources, and the Språksamlingen (Language Collections). The University Library contributes system development and expert linguistic programming to the lexicographic activities.