West Islip’s library runs 45 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14 for libraries its size
West Islip Public Library serves 27,276 people in and around West Islip. Last year it lent 146K books, movies and e-books and logged 164K visits.
What West Islip’s library is like
More of a place to be than a place to borrow
Visits per resident beat 93% of similar-size libraries, while borrowing beats only 36%. The building also logs about 36 Wi-Fi sessions a day. Program attendance beats 94% of similar libraries. A year at the library ↓
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
West Islip Public Library ran 1,236 programs last year, about 24 a week. That’s 45 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. People show up: 27,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Most of the library’s borrowing is digital
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 50% of loans, more per resident than at 84% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 50%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
A well-funded system
West Islip Public Library spends $144 per resident a year, about four times the typical $40 for a library its size. Almost all of it (96%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
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; West Islip Public Library serves 27,276 people in and around West Islip, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind West Islip’s civic life grade
West Islip isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
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 6 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
West Islip Public Library serves 27,276 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 46 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole West Islip Public Library system. The library’s own count.
50% of borrowing is digital
146K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
73,745 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
West Islip Public Library, 3 Higbie Lane, West Islip.
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 West Islip Public Library branch.
New in West Islip? 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 West Islip cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.5M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.9M 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 13,419 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Islip | West Islip Public Library fine-free | — | 61 | — graded as part of its town |
| Babylon | Lindenhurst Memorial Library fine-free | — | 68 | C− |
| Islip | Connetquot Public Library fine-free | — | 71 | C |
| Babylon | Babylon Public Library fine-free | — | 60 | B |
| North Babylon | North Babylon Public Library | — | 63 | — graded as part of its town |
| West Bay Shore | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Baywood | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Bay Shore | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
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. West Islip Public Library serves 27,276 people in and around West Islip, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just West Islip.
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 West Islip
Does West Islip have a public library?
Yes. West Islip Public Library, 3 Higbie Lane, serves 27,276 people in and around West Islip (the survey’s count) and is open about 61 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is West Islip 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 West Islip’s library?
It logged 6.0 visits and lent 5.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is West Islip’s civic life grade?
West Islip isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in West Islip.
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.