Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Fort Worth has no public library of its own; the nearest is Saginaw Public Library in Saginaw, 5.4 miles away
Fort Worth doesn’t have a public library of its own. The closest is Saginaw Public Library in Saginaw, 5.4 miles away. Many small-town libraries give cards to neighbors, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
DCivic lifeAhead of 11% of U.S. towns · #396 of 539 in Texas. Nonprofits and volunteering.Getting a library card from Fort Worth
Fort Worth borrows from the libraries next door
Fort Worth has no public library of its own, but four libraries are within 10 miles, the closest being Saginaw Public Library in Saginaw (5.4 miles). Many small-town libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead. Nearest libraries ↓
Fort Worth isn’t the only town nearby without one
Rendon, Lakeside and Northlake don’t have a public library of their own either. Among the towns next door, Arlington (Arlington Public Library System), Benbrook (Benbrook Public Library) and Euless (Euless Public Library) do. Libraries next door ↓
The closest isn’t the one open longest
Saginaw Public Library is nearest, open about 47 hours a week. Mary Lou Reddick Public Library, 5.7 miles away, is open about 77 hours a week, so it may be easier to fit in. Nearest libraries ↓
Most nearby libraries are fine-free
Three of the four closest libraries don’t charge late fines. Nearest libraries ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Distances are straight-line from the town center.
What’s behind Fort Worth’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Fort Worth is ahead of 11% of U.S. towns, #396 of 539 in Texas. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #281. Fort Worth is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Fort Worth’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($60K–$99K) 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 →
2,656 community nonprofits are registered in Fort Worth
2.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (1,158 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 180 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
4.7%
4.7% of Fort Worth’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 Fort Worth’s residents live; 2022.
The closest is 5.4 miles away
Closest first, measured from the center of Fort Worth. Each one’s hours, and whether it charges late fines.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benbrook | Benbrook Public Library fine-free | 9.6 | 60 | C+ |
| Euless | Euless Public Library fine-free | 4.6 | 58 | C− |
| Arlington | Arlington Public Library System | 4.1 | 70 | D |
| Haltom City | Haltom City Public Library fine-free | 2.5 | 50 | D |
| Grand Prairie | Grand Prairie Public Library System | 1.9 | 52 | D |
| Forest Hill | Forest Hill Public Library | 1.2 | 49 | D− |
| Rendon | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Lakeside | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Northlake | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Everman | None of its own | — | — | D− |
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 Fort Worth
Does Fort Worth have a public library?
No. The closest is Saginaw Public Library in Saginaw, 5.4 miles from the town center. Many libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
What is Fort Worth’s civic life grade?
D Fort Worth is ahead of 11% of U.S. towns on civic life, #396 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 Fort Worth.
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.