Hotel Kaddatz · Public domainFergus Falls’ library lends 9.9 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Fergus Falls Public Library serves Fergus Falls’s 19,271 residents. Last year it lent 223K books, movies and e-books and logged 123K visits.
The short version on Fergus Falls’s library
Fergus Falls uses its library more than almost any town its size
Fergus Falls Public Library logs 6.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, and lends 9.9 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 88% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 49% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 89% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 34 items per child in Fergus Falls last year. Kids & programs ↓
73% of Fergus Falls carry a library card
14,116 cards for 19,271 people, or 73%. At the typical library serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, it’s 40%. How it compares ↓
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 Fergus Falls’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Fergus Falls is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns, #96 of 271 in Minnesota. Fergus Falls is graded on two of the three inputs. Fergus Falls’ count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
119 community nonprofits are registered in Fergus Falls
8.4 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 (33 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
5.8%
5.8% of Fergus Falls’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical Minnesota 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 Fergus Falls’ residents live; 2022.
About 6 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 Fergus Falls last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Fergus Falls Public Library serves 19,271 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 75 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
223K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 82K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.3 times last year, on average.
32,000 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Fergus Falls Public Library, 205 East Hampden Ave, Fergus Falls.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Fergus Falls? 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 $3.25 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Fergus Falls cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.4M 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 14,116 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fergus Falls | Fergus Falls Public Library fine-free | 11.6 | 58 | B |
| Fergus Falls Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Buse Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Aurdal Township | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Orwell Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Carlisle Township | 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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Fergus Falls
Does Fergus Falls have a public library?
Yes. Fergus Falls Public Library, 205 East Hampden Ave, serves Fergus Falls’ 19,271 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 58 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Fergus Falls 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 Fergus Falls’ library?
It logged 6.4 visits and lent 11.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Fergus Falls’ civic life grade?
B Fergus Falls is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on civic life, #96 of 271 in Minnesota. 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 Fergus Falls.
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.