Photo: ArtisticAbode · CC BY-SA 3.0Cedar Rapids’ library logs 3 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries its size
Cedar Rapids Public Library serves Cedar Rapids’s 145,309 residents from 2 locations. Last year it lent 451K print books and media and logged 443K visits.
The short version on Cedar Rapids’s library
Every town next door borrows more
Cedar Rapids’s library lends 3.1 items per resident. Each of the three neighboring towns with a library of its own lends more, led by Hiawatha at 13. Libraries next door ↓
Open about 64 hours a week
The main library is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year. Every hour the doors are open, about 68 items go out. The buildings ↓
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 Cedar Rapids’ civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Cedar Rapids is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns, #83 of 138 in Iowa. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #44. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
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 →
596 community nonprofits are registered in Cedar Rapids
4.3 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 (122 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 18 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
10.6%
10.6% of Cedar Rapids’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.6% in the typical Iowa 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 Cedar Rapids’ residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Cedar Rapids Public Library serves 145,309 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 68 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
451K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 185K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.4 times last year, on average.
About 12 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Cedar Rapids last year.
2 places to borrow in Cedar Rapids
Cedar Rapids Public Library, 450 Fifth Ave SE, Cedar Rapids.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Cedar Rapids
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Cedar Rapids cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $8.3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $7.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $8.3M 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 55,736 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Cedar Rapids ranks 4th of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hiawatha | Hiawatha Public Library fine-free | 13.1 | 59 | A |
| Marion | Marion Public Library fine-free | 8.0 | 62 | B |
| Fairfax | Fairfax Public Library fine-free | 3.3 | 42 | A |
| Cedar Rapids | Cedar Rapids Public Library fine-free | 3.1 | 64 | B+ |
| Robins | None of its own | — | — | B− |
| Bertram | 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.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Cedar Rapids
Does Cedar Rapids have a public library?
Yes. Cedar Rapids Public Library, 450 Fifth Ave SE, serves Cedar Rapids’ 145,309 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Cedar Rapids Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Cedar Rapids’ library?
It logged 3.0 visits and lent 3.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Cedar Rapids’ civic life grade?
B+ Cedar Rapids is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns on civic life, #83 of 138 in Iowa. 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 Cedar Rapids.
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.