Wells Branch’s library runs 70 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Wells Branch Community Library serves Wells Branch’s 14,136 residents. Last year it lent 184K books, movies and e-books and logged 74K visits.
Wells Branch’s library, in brief
Wells Branch ranks 3rd in Texas for kids’ borrowing
Out of 183 Texas towns with a library of their own, Wells Branch comes 3rd for children’s items borrowed per child. It’s also #7 for borrowing and #16 for library use. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 55% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 93% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 35 items per child in Wells Branch last year. Kids & programs ↓
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
Wells Branch Community Library ran 984 programs last year, about 19 a week. That’s 70 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 19,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Wells Branch is a town of borrowers
Wells Branch Community Library lends 10 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, more than 91% of similar-size libraries. Each item on the shelves went out about 2.7 times last year. What people borrow ↓
Most programs are for young children
66% of the 984 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 11 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 Wells Branch’s civic life grade
On library visits and volunteering, Wells Branch is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns, #116 of 539 in Texas. Wells Branch is graded on two of the three inputs. Library visits hold the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
Volunteering in Wells Branch
Wells Branch is unincorporated, so its nonprofits aren’t counted: they file by mailing address, which doesn’t follow its boundary.
6.4%
6.4% of Wells Branch’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 Wells Branch’s residents live; 2022.
About 13 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 Wells Branch last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Wells Branch Community Library serves 14,136 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 62 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
184K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 55K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.7 times last year, on average.
36,463 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Wells Branch Community Library, 15001 Wells Port Dr, Austin.
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 Wells Branch? 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 $2.25 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Wells Branch cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.9M 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 7,436 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Branch | Wells Branch Community Library fine-free | 13.0 | 58 | B− |
| Austin | Austin Public Library fine-free | 7.9 | 61 | B |
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 Wells Branch
Does Wells Branch have a public library?
Yes. Wells Branch Community Library, 15001 Wells Port Dr, serves Wells Branch’s 14,136 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 58 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Wells Branch Community 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 Wells Branch’s library?
It logged 5.2 visits and lent 13.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Wells Branch’s civic life grade?
B− Wells Branch is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns on civic life, #116 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 Wells Branch.
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.