Photo: WMrapids · CC BY-SA 4.0East Grand Rapids’ library is a branch of Kent District Library, which lends more per resident than 97% of systems its size
East Grand Rapids’s library is the East Grand Rapids Branch Library, a branch of Kent District Library, which serves 439,194 people and lent 7.6M items last year.
The short version on East Grand Rapids’s library
One of the busiest library systems its size
The Kent District Library system logs 5.2 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, and lends 12 print items per resident against a typical 3.2. On both counts it beats 97% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 53% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 98% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 5.5 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.4, higher than at 96% of similar-size libraries. It’s 32% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
The Kent District Library system ran 9,516 programs last year, about 183 a week. That’s 22 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 9. People show up: 295,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
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; East Grand Rapids’s library is a branch of Kent District Library, so they cover the whole system (439,194 people), not just the East Grand Rapids branch.
What’s behind East Grand Rapids’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, East Grand Rapids is ahead of 43% of U.S. towns, #533 of 697 in Michigan. East Grand Rapids is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; East Grand Rapids’ count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($125K–$208K) 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 →
4 community nonprofits are registered in East Grand Rapids
0.4 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 (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
12.4%
12.4% of East Grand Rapids’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 12.4% in the typical Michigan 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 East Grand Rapids’ residents live; 2022.
Every hour the doors are open, about 153 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Kent District Library system. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Kent District Library serves 439,194 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
7.6M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
2,420,617 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 81 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.
Find it
East Grand Rapids Branch Library, 746 Lakeside Drive SE, East Grand Rapids.
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 Kent District Library branch.
New in East Grand Rapids? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.76 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average East Grand Rapids cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $31M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $117M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $31M 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 132,795 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Rapids | Grand Rapids Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 69 | B |
| East Grand Rapids | East Grand Rapids Branch Library fine-free | — | 58 | C+ |
| Grand Rapids Township | None of its own | — | — | 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. East Grand Rapids Branch Library is one branch of Kent District Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 439,194 people it serves.
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 East Grand Rapids
Does East Grand Rapids have a public library?
Yes: East Grand Rapids Branch Library, 746 Lakeside Drive SE, is a branch of Kent District Library, which serves 439,194 people. The branch is open about 58 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Kent District 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 East Grand Rapids’ library?
It logged 5.2 visits and lent 17.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is East Grand Rapids’ civic life grade?
C+ East Grand Rapids is ahead of 43% of U.S. towns on civic life, #533 of 697 in Michigan. 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 East Grand 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.