Photo: Hayden Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Cos Cob’s library logs 7.7 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries its size
Greenwich Library serves 63,574 people in and around Cos Cob. Last year it lent 962K books, movies and e-books and logged 492K visits.
The short version on Cos Cob’s library
Cos Cob uses its library more than almost any town its size
Greenwich Library logs 7.7 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, and lends 9.1 print items per resident against a typical 3.7. On both counts it beats 87% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
47% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 53%. What your card is worth ↓
Cos Cob invests in its library
Greenwich Library spends $171 per resident a year, about four times the typical $40 for a library its size. What your card is worth ↓
40% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 40% of loans, more per resident than at 98% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 60%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
Programs draw a crowd
62,000 people came to the library’s 1,803 programs last year: 1 per resident, against a typical 0.3, more than at 94% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
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.
What’s behind Cos Cob’s civic life grade
Cos Cob isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Every hour the doors are open, about 120 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Greenwich Library serves 63,574 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
40% of borrowing is digital
962K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 287K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2 times last year, on average.
386,253 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 16 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, 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
Cos Cob Branch Library, 126 East Putnam Ave, Greenwich.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Cos Cob? 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 $1.40 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Cos Cob cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $11M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $15M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $11M 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 23,317 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cos Cob | Cos Cob Branch Library fine-free | 15.1 | 46 | — graded as part of its town |
| Riverside | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Indian Field | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Cos Cob
Does Cos Cob have a public library?
Yes. Greenwich Library, 126 East Putnam Ave, serves 63,574 people in and around Cos Cob (the survey’s count) and is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Greenwich Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Cos Cob’s library?
It logged 7.7 visits and lent 15.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Cos Cob’s civic life grade?
Cos Cob isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Cos Cob.
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.