Photo: Luigi Novi · CC BY 4.0Brielle’s library runs 191 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Brielle Public Library serves Brielle’s 4,982 residents. Last year it lent 28K books, movies and e-books and logged 54K visits.
Brielle’s library, in brief
Six times the programs of a typical library its size
Brielle Public Library ran 951 programs last year, about 18 a week. That’s 191 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 13,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Top 10% in New Jersey for library use
Brielle ranks #14 of 234 New Jersey towns with a library of their own for visits per resident. That’s 11 visits per resident, more than at 95% of similar-size libraries nationwide. 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 Brielle’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Brielle is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #20 of 466 in New Jersey. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; library visits rank 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 →
35 community nonprofits are registered in Brielle
7.1 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.
8.2%
8.2% of Brielle’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.2% in the typical New Jersey 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 Brielle’s 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Brielle Public Library serves 4,982 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 13 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
28K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 18K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.1 time last year, on average.
8,502 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Brielle Public Library, 610 South Street, Brielle.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Brielle? 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 $3.13 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Brielle cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $190K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $594K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $190K budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 3,093 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brielle | Brielle Public Library | 5.7 | 43 | A |
| Manasquan | Manasquan Public Library | — | — | A− |
| Point Pleasant Beach | Point Pleasant Beach Branch Library fine-free | — | 43 | B+ |
| Point Pleasant | Point Pleasant Branch Library fine-free | — | 60 | B+ |
| Wall Township | Wall Public Library | — | 58 | A− |
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 Brielle
Does Brielle have a public library?
Yes. Brielle Public Library, 610 South Street, serves Brielle’s 4,982 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 43 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Brielle Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Brielle’s library?
It logged 10.9 visits and lent 5.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Brielle’s civic life grade?
A Brielle is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on civic life, #20 of 466 in New Jersey. 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 Brielle.
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.