Photo: Iowahwyman (Uploads) · CC BY-SA 3.0Clive’s library runs 52 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Clive Public Library serves Clive’s 18,768 residents from 2 locations. Last year it lent 168K print books and media and logged 55K visits.
Clive’s library, in brief
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 63% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 92% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 20 items per child in Clive last year. Kids & programs ↓
Open about 69 hours a week
The main library is open about 69 hours a week, averaged over the year. Every hour the doors are open, about 41 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 Clive’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Clive is ahead of 43% of U.S. towns, #119 of 138 in Iowa. All three inputs sit below most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($99K–$165K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for 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 →
70 community nonprofits are registered in Clive
3.7 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 (14 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 4 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
7.5%
7.5% of Clive’s 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 Clive’s residents live; 2022.
About 10 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 Clive last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Clive Public Library serves 18,768 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 41 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
168K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 82K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2 times last year, on average.
2 places to borrow in Clive
Clive Public Library, 1900 NW 114th St., Clive.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Clive
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.23 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Clive cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.5M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.1M 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 11,382 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Clive ranks 2nd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Urbandale | Urbandale Public Library | 9.0 | 70 | B+ |
| Clive | Clive Public Library fine-free | 9.0 | 69 | C+ |
| Waukee | Waukee Public Library fine-free | 7.3 | 57 | B− |
| West Des Moines | West Des Moines Public Library | 6.1 | 64 | B |
| Windsor Heights | None of its own | — | — | A− |
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 Clive
Does Clive have a public library?
Yes. Clive Public Library, 1900 NW 114th St., serves Clive’s 18,768 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 69 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Clive Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Clive’s library?
It logged 3.0 visits and lent 9.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Clive’s civic life grade?
C+ Clive is ahead of 43% of U.S. towns on civic life, #119 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 Clive.
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.