Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Chelmsford’s library runs 36 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14 for libraries its size
Chelmsford Public Library serves Chelmsford’s 35,906 residents from 2 locations. Last year it lent 391K print books and media and logged 166K visits.
The short version on Chelmsford’s library
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 50% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 92% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 25 items per child in Chelmsford last year. Kids & programs ↓
Chelmsford is a town of borrowers
Chelmsford Public Library lends 11 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, more than 91% of similar-size libraries. Each item on the shelves went out about 3.2 times last year. What people borrow ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Chelmsford Public Library ran 1,308 programs last year, about 25 a week. That’s 36 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. People show up: 28,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Open about 72 hours a week
The main library is open about 72 hours a week, averaged over the year. Every hour the doors are open, about 91 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 Chelmsford’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Chelmsford is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns, #82 of 283 in Massachusetts. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
138 community nonprofits are registered in Chelmsford
3.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (28 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
11.2%
11.2% of Chelmsford’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.9% in the typical Massachusetts 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 Chelmsford’s residents live; 2022.
About 11 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 Chelmsford last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Chelmsford Public Library serves 35,906 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 91 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
391K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 122K books and other items on the shelves went out about 3.2 times last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
2 places to borrow in Chelmsford
Chelmsford Public Library, 25 Boston Rd., Chelmsford.
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 Chelmsford? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Chelmsford
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.04 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Chelmsford cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $5.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.9M 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 11,742 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Chelmsford ranks 3rd of 6 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carlisle | Gleason Public Library fine-free | 16.7 | 52 | A+ |
| Westford | J. V. Fletcher Library fine-free | 12.9 | 53 | A |
| Chelmsford | Chelmsford Public Library fine-free | 10.9 | 72 | A− |
| Billerica | Billerica Public Library fine-free | 5.9 | 61 | C− |
| Tyngsborough | Tyngsborough Public Library fine-free | 5.9 | 37 | B− |
| Lowell | Samuel S. Pollard Memorial Library | 0.9 | 62 | D |
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. Massachusetts libraries often don’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 Chelmsford
Does Chelmsford have a public library?
Yes. Chelmsford Public Library, 25 Boston Rd., serves Chelmsford’s 35,906 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 72 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Chelmsford 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 Chelmsford’s library?
It logged 4.6 visits and lent 10.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Chelmsford’s civic life grade?
A− Chelmsford is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on civic life, #82 of 283 in Massachusetts. 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 Chelmsford.
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.