Photo: EFreiboth · CC BY-SA 4.0Questa’s library runs 82 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Questa Public Library serves Questa’s 1,742 residents. Last year it lent 2,095 books, movies and e-books and logged 5,488 visits.
The short version on Questa’s library
New Mexico pays a big share
28% of the budget comes from the state, and 69% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Programs lean toward adults
59% of the 143 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 58 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
Questa Public Library lends 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, fewer than 88% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. What people borrow ↓
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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Questa’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Questa is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns. Questa 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 Questa
5.7 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: arts & culture.
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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.7%
10.7% of Questa’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.2% in the typical New Mexico 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 Questa’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Questa Public Library serves 1,742 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
2,095 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 7,869 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 time last year, on average.
46 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
About 1 kids’ program 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 Questa last year.
Find it
Questa Public Library, 6 1/2 Municipal Park Road, Questa.
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 Questa cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $79K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $60K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $79K 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 1,407 cardholders ÷ 12.
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 Questa
Does Questa have a public library?
Yes. Questa Public Library, 6 1/2 Municipal Park Road, serves Questa’s 1,742 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 29 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Questa Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Questa’s library?
It logged 3.2 visits and lent 1.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Questa’s civic life grade?
A Questa is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on civic life. 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 Questa.
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.