Libraries

Question:
What information do you have on postsecondary academic libraries and public libraries?

Response:

In 2020–21, there were libraries at 93 percent of degree-granting postsecondary institutions overall, including 98 percent of public institutions, 95 percent of private nonprofit institutions, and 78 percent of private for-profit institutions.

Collections and operating expenditures of degree-granting postsecondary institution libraries: Academic year 2020–21
School level, enrollment size, and locale	Total	Public	Private nonprofit	Private for-profit
Number of libraries	3,631	1,547	1,542	542
Percentage of institutions with libraries	93.1	97.8	94.8	78.4
Number of circulation transactions (in thousands)	1,074,154	682,420	311,469	80,266
Physical transactions	13,480	6,626	6,673	181
Electronic transactions	1,060,674	675,793	304,796	80,085
Number of circulation transactions per full-time-equivalent (FTE) student	75	68	90	100
Collections (in thousands)
Total number of physical and electronic materials (books, media, and databases)	2,889,335	1,560,992	1,089,658	238,685
Number of books	2,078,928	1,091,293	839,665	147,970
Number of media (includes audiovisual materials)	808,942	469,115	249,414	90,413
Number of databases (electronic only)	1,464	584	579	302
Library operating expenditures1
Total operating expenditures (in thousands of current dollars)	$7,908,508	$4,734,820	$3,101,663	$72,025
Operating expenditures per full-time-equivalent (FTE) student
In current dollars	552	470	893	90
Information resource expenditures per FTE student
In current dollars	218	177	378	43

¹ Excludes capital outlay. Expenditure data are reported only by degree-granting institutions with total expenditures over $100,000.
NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Degree-granting institutions grant associate's or higher degrees and participate in Title IV federal financial aid programs. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). Table 701.40. Collections, staff, and operating expenditures of degree-granting postsecondary institution libraries: Selected academic years, 2001–02 through 2020–21 [Data table]. In Digest of Education Statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved December 14, 2023, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_701.40.asp.

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In 2020, there were 9,025 public libraries¹ in the United States with a total of 669 million books and serial volumes. That year, usage of selected services per capita—that is, per resident of the areas served by the libraries—was

• 2.3 library visits;²
• 5.2 materials lent;
• and 0.4 uses of public-access internet computers.

¹Refers to the number of administrative entities that are legally established under local or state law to provide public library service to the population of a local jurisdiction. A public library (administrative entity) may have a single outlet that provides direct service to the public, or it may have multiple service outlets. In 2019, a total of 16,607 stationary service outlets (8,884 central libraries and 7,723 branch libraries) were open to the public; 671 additional service outlets were bookmobiles. In 2020, a total of 16,568 stationary service outlets (8,852 central libraries and 7,716 branch libraries) were open to the public; 679 additional service outlets were bookmobiles.
²Includes only the number of physical visits (entering the library for any purpose). The survey does not collect data on the number of online visits.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). Table 701.60. Number of public libraries, number of books and serial volumes, and per capita usage of selected library services per year, by state: Fiscal years 2019 and 2020 [Data table]. In Digest of Education Statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved December 14, 2023, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_701.60.asp.

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2023, IPEDS Data Explorer, Number of items in library collections and the number of times items are in circulation at Title IV degree-granting institutions, by level and control of institution, and type of library collection or circulation: United States, fiscal year 2021
  
• 2021, Digest of Education Statistics 2019, Table 701.50. Collections, staff, operating expenditures, public service hours, and reference services of the 60 largest college and university libraries: Fiscal year 2012
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2023, Library Statistics Program: This site includes data on library collections, expenditures, services, and staffing.
  
• 2022, Enrollment and Employees in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2021; and Financial Statistics and Academic Libraries, Fiscal Year 2021 (Provisional Data)