Photo: sm85631 · CC BY-SA 4.0San Manuel’s library is a branch of Pinal County Library District, which lends less per resident than 97% of systems its size
San Manuel’s library is the San Manuel Public Library, a branch of Pinal County Library District, which serves 483,944 people and lent 241K items last year.
San Manuel’s library, in brief
The Pinal County Library District system is used less than most libraries its size
The Pinal County Library District system records 0.1 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people. Borrowing is 0.4 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2. It also spends less than most: $6 per resident, against a typical $36. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Pinal County Library District system offered 674 programs last year, 1.4 per 1,000 residents against a typical 9. Kids & programs ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Pinal County Library District system spends $6 per resident, less than 99% of similar-size libraries (typical: $36). What your card is worth ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 60% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 95% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. What people borrow ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Numbers are the library’s own report to the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024; San Manuel’s library is a branch of Pinal County Library District, so they cover the whole system (483,944 people), not just the San Manuel branch.
What’s behind San Manuel’s civic life grade
San Manuel isn’t graded on civic life: it’s unincorporated, so its nonprofits can’t be counted reliably (mailing addresses don’t follow its boundary), its library is a branch of Pinal County Library District, so there is no town figure for visits and the volunteering estimate doesn’t cover enough of it.
Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.
Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Pinal County Library District serves 483,944 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 30 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Pinal County Library District system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
241K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
27,780 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 7 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
San Manuel Public Library, 108 5th Ave, San Manuel.
No late fees. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Pinal County Library District branch.
New in San Manuel? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.33 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average San Manuel cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $2.8M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.8M budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
Retail prices are typical, rounded down: a new book $17, a kids’ book $12, an e-book or e-audiobook $15, a movie rental $4, a class or program $10, a computer or Wi-Fi session $3. The average cardholder’s month = the library’s yearly loans, attendance and Wi-Fi sessions ÷ its 22,974 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. San Manuel Public Library is one branch of Pinal County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 483,944 people it serves.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →
Questions about the library and civic life in San Manuel
Does San Manuel have a public library?
Yes: San Manuel Public Library, 108 5th Ave, is a branch of Pinal County Library District, which serves 483,944 people. The branch is open about 24 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Pinal County Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is San Manuel’s library?
It logged 0.1 visits and lent 0.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is San Manuel’s civic life grade?
San Manuel isn’t graded on civic life: it’s unincorporated, so its nonprofits can’t be counted reliably (mailing addresses don’t follow its boundary), its library is a branch of Pinal County Library District, so there is no town figure for visits and the volunteering estimate doesn’t cover enough of it. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in San Manuel.
Libraries: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Each library reports its own numbers. Distances are straight-line from the town center. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.