Photo: Ralf Roletschek - Infos über Fahrräder auf fahrradmonteur.de Wikis in der Ausbildung · CC BY-SA 3.0Washington’s library logs 4.8 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries its size
District of Columbia Public Library serves 702,250 people in and around Washington from 27 locations. Last year it lent 6.6M books, movies and e-books and logged 3.4M visits.
The short version on Washington’s library
People come to District of Columbia Public Library a lot
District of Columbia Public Library logs 4.8 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, more than 97% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing is above typical too, at 5.5 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
27 places to borrow in Washington
District of Columbia Public Library runs 27 locations, and one card works at all of them. The buildings ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
King, Martin Luther, Memorial Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2007. Today’s library there has 440,000 square feet. The buildings ↓
42% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 42% of loans, more per resident than at 90% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 58%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
Washington invests in its library
District of Columbia Public Library spends $121 per resident a year, about three times the typical $36 for a library its size. Almost all of it (96%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
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 Washington’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Washington is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #7. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; Washington’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
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 →
6,380 community nonprofits are registered in Washington
9.4 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (976 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1,370 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
9.2%
9.2% of Washington’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.2% in the typical District of Columbia town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where Washington’s residents live; 2022.
Every hour the doors are open, about 86 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
District of Columbia Public Library serves 702,250 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
42% of borrowing is digital
6.6M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 1.2M books and other items on the shelves went out about 3.2 times last year, on average.
2,799,947 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 75 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.
A National Register landmark since 2007
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G Street NW, Washington.
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 Washington? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
King, Martin Luther, Memorial Library
King, Martin Luther, Memorial Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Oct 22, 2007. It is significant for its architecture at the state level. Its architecture is described as International Style and Miesian.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (MLKML) is the central facility of the District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL), constructed and named in honor of the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Its address is 901 G St. NW in Downtown Washington, D.C., with its main entrance between 9th and 10th St. on the opposite corner to Gallery Place station, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
More about the building →Other libraries in Washington
And 14 more in Washington.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.19 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Washington cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $85M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $101M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $85M 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 432,625 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Washington borrows the most per resident of the 3 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library fine-free | 9.5 | 64 | A |
| Alexandria | Charles E. Beatley, Jr. Central Library fine-free | 7.9 | 58 | B |
| Takoma Park | Takoma Park Maryland Library fine-free | 2.4 | 56 | A− |
| Arlington | Central Library fine-free | — | 61 | B+ |
| Silver Spring | Brigadier General Charles E Mcgee (Sliver Spring) Branch fine-free | — | 61 | — unincorporated |
| Bethesda | Connie Morella (Bethesda) Branch fine-free | — | 61 | — unincorporated |
| Brookmont | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
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 Washington
Does Washington have a public library?
Yes. District of Columbia Public Library, 901 G Street NW, serves 702,250 people in and around Washington (the survey’s count) and is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is District of Columbia Public 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 Washington’s library?
It logged 4.8 visits and lent 9.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Washington’s civic life grade?
A Washington is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns on civic life. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Washington.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.