Photo: LittleT889 · CC BY-SA 4.0Brentwood’s library lends 14 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Brentwood Public Library serves Brentwood’s 8,233 residents. Last year it lent 131K books, movies and e-books and logged 62K visits.
The short version on Brentwood’s library
Brentwood ranks 2nd in Missouri for kids’ borrowing
Out of 50 Missouri towns with a library of their own, Brentwood comes 2nd for children’s items borrowed per child. It’s also #3 for borrowing. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 57% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 98% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 41 items per child in Brentwood last year. Kids & programs ↓
Brentwood uses its library more than almost any town its size
Brentwood Public Library logs 7.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 14 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 88% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Programs are almost all for children
82% of the 217 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.7 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Brentwood out-borrows every town next door
At 16 loans per resident, Brentwood leads the five towns here. The closest is Richmond Heights, at 13. Libraries next door ↓
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 Brentwood’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Brentwood is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns, #61 of 229 in Missouri. Brentwood’s 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 →
64 community nonprofits are registered in Brentwood
7.8 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 (11 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.
6.6%
6.6% of Brentwood’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.3% in the typical Missouri 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 Brentwood’s residents live; 2022.
About 3 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 Brentwood last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Brentwood Public Library serves 8,233 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 39 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
131K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 49K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.3 times last year, on average.
19,192 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Brentwood Public Library, 8765 Eulalie Ave, Brentwood.
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 Brentwood? 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 $2.65 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Brentwood cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $726K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $726K 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 5,684 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Brentwood borrows the most per resident of the 5 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brentwood | Brentwood Public Library fine-free | 15.9 | 65 | A− |
| Richmond Heights | Richmond Heights Memorial Library fine-free | 13.1 | 61 | A+ |
| Maplewood | Maplewood Public Library | 11.1 | 60 | A |
| Webster Groves | City of Webster Groves Municipal Library fine-free | 11.0 | 66 | A− |
| Rock Hill | Rock Hill Public Library fine-free | 6.6 | 45 | 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.
- 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 Brentwood
Does Brentwood have a public library?
Yes. Brentwood Public Library, 8765 Eulalie Ave, serves Brentwood’s 8,233 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 65 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Brentwood 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 Brentwood’s library?
It logged 7.6 visits and lent 15.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Brentwood’s civic life grade?
A− Brentwood is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns on civic life, #61 of 229 in Missouri. 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 Brentwood.
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.