Cape May Historic District (Additional Documentation) · Photo: Smallbones · CC0Cape May’s library runs 36 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14 for libraries its size
Cape May County Library serves 82,791 people in and around Cape May. Last year it lent 585K books, movies and e-books and logged 385K visits.
Cape May’s library, in brief
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Cape May County Library ran 2,987 programs last year, about 57 a week. That’s 36 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Nearly everyone the system serves has a card
74,194 cards for 82,791 people, or 90%. At the typical library serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, it’s 39%. How it compares ↓
A well-funded system
Cape May County Library spends $128 per resident a year, about three times the typical $40 for a library its size. Almost all of it (98%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
Programs lean toward adults
59% of the 2,987 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 761 were for children. 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; Cape May County Library serves 82,791 people in and around Cape May, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Cape May’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Cape May is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #50 of 466 in New Jersey. Cape May is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
14 community nonprofits are registered in Cape May
5.2 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.0%
10.0% of Cape May’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 Cape May’s residents live; 2022.
About 15 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Cape May County Library serves 82,791 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
A year at Cape May County Library
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Cape May County Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
585K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
200,873 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Cape May City Branch, 110 Ocean St., Cape May.
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 Cape May County Library branch.
New in Cape May? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Cape May cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $11M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $9.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $11M 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 74,194 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape May | Cape May City Branch fine-free | — | 53 | A |
| Lower Township | Lower Cape Branch fine-free | — | 57 | B+ |
| West Cape May | None of its own | — | — | — graded with its twin city |
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. Cape May County Library serves 82,791 people in and around Cape May, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Cape May.
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 Cape May
Does Cape May have a public library?
Yes. Cape May County Library, 110 Ocean St., serves 82,791 people in and around Cape May (the survey’s count) and is open about 53 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Cape May County 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 Cape May’s library?
It logged 4.6 visits and lent 7.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Cape May’s civic life grade?
A Cape May is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on civic life, #50 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 Cape May.
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.