R.H. and Jessie Bell House · Photo: Tamanoeconomico · CC BY-SA 4.0Meridian’s library lends 8.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2 for libraries its size
Meridian District serves 147,406 people in and around Meridian from 5 locations. Last year it lent 1.7M books, movies and e-books and logged 464K visits.
Meridian’s library, in brief
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 61% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 91% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
A system of heavy borrowers
Meridian District lends 8.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, more than 89% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
Five branches in Meridian
Meridian has five branches of the Meridian District, which serves 147,406 people in and around Meridian. One card works at all of them. 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; Meridian District serves 147,406 people in and around Meridian, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Meridian’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Meridian is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns, #32 of 54 in Idaho. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #85. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Meridian’s count of community nonprofits pulls 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 →
408 community nonprofits are registered in Meridian
3.1 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (104 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 16 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
9.4%
9.4% of Meridian’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.7% in the typical Idaho 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 Meridian’s residents live; 2022.
About 19 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Meridian District serves 147,406 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 133 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Meridian District system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
1.7M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
459,684 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
5 places to borrow in Meridian
Meridian District, 1326 W Cherry Ln, Meridian.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Meridian District branch.
New in Meridian? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other Meridian District branches in Meridian
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.18 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Meridian cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $7.6M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $24M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $7.6M 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 54,271 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagle | Eagle Public fine-free | 19.8 | 63 | A− |
| Boise City | Boise Public fine-free | 10.8 | 54 | A− |
| Meridian | Meridian District fine-free | — | 62 | B− |
| Kuna | Kuna District fine-free | — | 51 | B |
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.
- System-wide. Meridian District serves 147,406 people in and around Meridian, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Meridian.
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 Meridian
Does Meridian have a public library?
Yes. Meridian District, 1326 W Cherry Ln, serves 147,406 people in and around Meridian (the survey’s count) and is open about 62 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Meridian District 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 Meridian’s library?
It logged 3.1 visits and lent 11.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Meridian’s civic life grade?
B− Meridian is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns on civic life, #32 of 54 in Idaho. 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 Meridian.
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.