Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Chriswardster assumed (based on copyright claims). · Public domainSouthlake’s library lends 11 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7 for libraries its size
Southlake Public Library serves Southlake’s 31,137 residents. Last year it lent 434K books, movies and e-books and logged 120K visits.
Southlake’s library, in brief
Southlake ranks 4th in Texas for borrowing
Out of 183 Texas towns with a library of their own, Southlake comes 4th for items borrowed per resident. It’s also #11 for kids’ borrowing. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 67% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 97% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 24 items per child in Southlake last year. Kids & programs ↓
The shelves work hard
Each of the 42,000 items on the shelves went out about 8.4 times last year, on average. What people borrow ↓
Southlake out-borrows every town next door
At 14 loans per resident, Southlake leads the four towns here. The closest is Colleyville, at 10. Libraries next door ↓
Programs are almost all for children
83% of the 533 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 6 a week for ages 0–5. 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.
What’s behind Southlake’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Southlake is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #28 of 539 in Texas. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; Southlake’s count of community nonprofits 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 →
240 community nonprofits are registered in Southlake
7.7 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 (51 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 16 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
10.1%
10.1% of Southlake’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 Southlake’s residents live; 2022.
About 8 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 Southlake last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Southlake Public Library serves 31,137 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 160 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
434K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 42K books and other items on the shelves went out about 8.4 times last year, on average.
85,744 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Southlake Public Library, 1400 Main St. Ste 130, Southlake.
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 Southlake? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $4.93 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Southlake cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $6.5M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.3M 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 15,741 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Southlake borrows the most per resident of the 4 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southlake | Southlake Public Library fine-free | 13.9 | 52 | A |
| Colleyville | Colleyville Public Library fine-free | 10.4 | 47 | A− |
| Keller | Keller Public Library fine-free | 9.2 | 52 | B |
| Grapevine | Grapevine Public Library fine-free | 8.5 | 63 | C+ |
| Westlake | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Trophy Club | 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 Southlake
Does Southlake have a public library?
Yes. Southlake Public Library, 1400 Main St. Ste 130, serves Southlake’s 31,137 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 52 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Southlake 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 Southlake’s library?
It logged 3.9 visits and lent 13.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Southlake’s civic life grade?
A Southlake is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on civic life, #28 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 Southlake.
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.