Photo: Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, NPS from St. Louis, MO, USA · CC BY 2.0St. Louis’ library runs 30 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 9 for libraries its size
City of St. Louis Municipal Library District serves St. Louis’s 301,578 residents from 16 locations. Last year it lent 2.6M books, movies and e-books and logged 1.1M visits.
St. Louis’s library, in brief
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
City of St. Louis Municipal Library District ran 9,167 programs last year, about 176 a week. That’s 30 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 9. People show up: 156,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
42% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 42% of loans, more per resident than at 87% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 58%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
16 places to borrow in St. Louis
City of St. Louis Municipal Library District runs 16 locations, and one card works at all of them. The buildings ↓
St. Louis invests in its library
City of St. Louis Municipal Library District spends $105 per resident a year, about three times the typical $36 for a library its size. Almost all of it (87%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
Open about 64 hours a week
The main library is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year. Every hour the doors are open, about 63 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 St. Louis’ civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, St. Louis is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns, #72 of 229 in Missouri. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #28. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; St. Louis’ count of community nonprofits 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 →
1,623 community nonprofits are registered in St. Louis
5.6 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 (521 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 78 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
9.4%
9.4% of St. Louis’ 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 St. Louis’ residents live; 2022.
About 85 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 St. Louis last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
City of St. Louis Municipal Library District serves 301,578 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 63 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
42% of borrowing is digital
2.6M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 2.4M books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.6 time last year, on average.
1,095,865 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
16 places to borrow in St. Louis
Central Library, 1301 Olive Street, St. Louis.
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 St. Louis? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in St. Louis
And 3 more in St. Louis.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.97 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average St. Louis cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $32M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $62M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $32M 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 194,779 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
St. Louis ranks 2nd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond Heights | Richmond Heights Memorial Library fine-free | 13.1 | 61 | A+ |
| St. Louis | Central Library fine-free | 8.6 | 64 | A− |
| Venice Township | Madison Public Library | 0.4 | 34 | D− |
| Clayton | Mid-County Branch fine-free | — | 64 | A |
| Centreville Township | Cahokia Public Library District | — | 49 | D |
| East St. Louis | East St. Louis Public Library | — | 58 | C− |
| East St. Louis Township | East St. Louis Public Library | — | 58 | — graded with its twin city |
| Lemay | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Glasgow Village | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Riverview | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Chouteau Township | None of its own | — | — | 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.
- 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 St. Louis
Does St. Louis have a public library?
Yes. City of St. Louis Municipal Library District, 1301 Olive Street, serves St. Louis’ 301,578 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is City of St. Louis Municipal Library 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 St. Louis’ library?
It logged 3.5 visits and lent 8.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is St. Louis’ civic life grade?
A− St. Louis is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns on civic life, #72 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 St. Louis.
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.