Photo: Thivierr · CC BY-SA 3.0At 12.7 loans per person served, Calgary Public Library lends more than 82% of Alberta’s town libraries
Calgary Public Library serves the whole of Calgary, so the library figures on this page are the city’s: 1,285,711 people, Hillhurst among them. In 2022 it logged 3.8 visits for every person it serves. 2022 is the latest year in Alberta’s open library statistics, so the figures date from then.
BCivic life#85 of 474 in AlbertaBehind Hillhurst’s civic life grade
Hillhurst gets a B for civic life, #85 of 474 towns graded in Alberta. A civic life grade combines library visits per resident, registered charities per 1,000 residents and the province’s volunteering rate, and all three exist for Hillhurst.
Informal groups and mutual aid go uncounted.
Sources: provincial statistics, the CRA, Statistics Canada.
1,993 registered charities give a Calgary mailing address
There is no count for Hillhurst on its own: the charities are those of all of Calgary. Per 1,000 residents that makes 1.2; the median is 1.3 for Alberta towns and 1.4 for Canada’s. Counting by mailing address favors a service town, where the surrounding area’s charities get their mail, over the suburbs and countryside around it.
37.1%
Across Alberta, 37.1% of people volunteered through an organization in 2023, a provincial estimate with a likely range of 35.1% to 39.2%; the lowest province sits at 25.2% and the highest at 40.3%.
Statistics Canada, table 45-10-0039.
Ahead of most of Alberta’s town libraries on all 3 measures
Each figure is per person served, set against 118 town libraries in Alberta’s statistics for 2022.
Town libraries only; regional systems left out.
About 13,450 visits a day
What Calgary Public Library counted in 2022, as the library reported it.
2 public libraries in Hillhurst
Nearest first, measured in a straight line from the centre of Hillhurst.















What this data can and can’t tell you
- Library locations. Two sources make the map, OpenStreetMap and a 2020 Statistics Canada list, with academic and private libraries dropped.
Questions about the library and civic life in Hillhurst
Does Hillhurst have a public library?
Yes, 2: Calgary Public Library - Louise Riley Branch and Reg Erhardt Library.
How busy is Calgary Public Library?
For 2022 it reported 16,347,892 loans and 4,909,275 in-person visits.
Library statistics: Alberta public library statistics, 2022. Library locations: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Statistics Canada, Open Database of Cultural and Art Facilities (2020). Charities: Canada Revenue Agency, List of charities (2024), charitable organizations only.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).