Carrollton’s library runs 3.7 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 9 for libraries its size
Carrollton Public Library serves Carrollton’s 163,835 residents from 2 locations. Last year it lent 682K books, movies and e-books and logged 169K visits.
Carrollton’s library, in brief
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 70% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 64% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
Fewer visits than most libraries its size
Carrollton Public Library records 1 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, below 90% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing holds up better, at 3.3 print items per resident. 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 Carrollton’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Carrollton is ahead of 7% of U.S. towns, #428 of 539 in Texas. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #317. All three inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Carrollton’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($76K–$127K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
347 community nonprofits are registered in Carrollton
2.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (182 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 34 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
5.1%
5.1% of Carrollton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.7% in the typical Texas 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 Carrollton’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Carrollton Public Library serves 163,835 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 138 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
682K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 142K books and other items on the shelves went out about 3.8 times last year, on average.
148,251 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 7 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 Carrollton last year.
2 places to borrow in Carrollton
Carrollton Public Library, 1700 Keller Springs Rd, Carrollton.
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 Carrollton? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Carrollton
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.55 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Carrollton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $3.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1M 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 36,220 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Carrollton ranks 6th of 8 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plano | Plano Public Library System fine-free | 12.8 | 66 | B |
| Coppell | Cozby Library and Community Commons fine-free | 11.2 | 67 | B+ |
| Irving | South Irving Library fine-free | 5.2 | 62 | D |
| Farmers Branch | Farmers Branch Manske Public Library | 5.0 | 62 | C− |
| Dallas | Dallas Public Library fine-free | 4.4 | 48 | D |
| Carrollton | Carrollton Public Library fine-free | 4.2 | 46 | D |
| Lewisville | Lewisville Public Library fine-free | 4.1 | 58 | D− |
| The Colony | The Colony Public Library fine-free | 2.1 | 47 | C− |
| Hebron | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Addison | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
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 Carrollton
Does Carrollton have a public library?
Yes. Carrollton Public Library, 1700 Keller Springs Rd, serves Carrollton’s 163,835 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Carrollton 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 Carrollton’s library?
It logged 1.0 visits and lent 4.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Carrollton’s civic life grade?
D Carrollton is ahead of 7% of U.S. towns on civic life, #428 of 539 in Texas. 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 Carrollton.
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.