New Data, Trends: Urban Libraries Council (ULC) Releases 2024 Library Insights Report

From ULC:

This summer, the Urban Libraries Council asked its 187 member libraries across the U.S. and Canada to participate in the second-annual Library Insights Survey (LIS), compiling 2023 data to build on pre-pandemic trends tracked from 2019-2022. Today, we proudly release the 2024 Library Insights Report.

The 2024 report provides a data-driven view of post-pandemic performance for urban libraries across the U.S. and Canada, drawing on responses from 115 ULC member libraries representing nearly 2,300 locations and 87.5 million people.

Here are some of the trends we are seeing:

1. In-person visits to the library remain on the rise, increasing by 24% in 2023–a trend expected to continue in 2024.
2. Room reservations and use of e-Resources reached new highs: the average number of room reservations for all libraries surveyed increased by 52% from 2022 to 2023, surpassing pre-pandemic 2019 levels by 18%. Respondents also reported an 11% increase in the number of e-Resources accessed between 2022 and 2023, representing a 40% increase when compared to 2019.
3. Significant increases in library programs and services: Compared to 2022, the average number of programs offered by libraries rose by approximately 42%, while the average program attendance rose approximately 53%.
4. Average and total FTE library staffing is largely at pre-pandemic levels: After a decline in 2022, the recent LIS data shows a slight increase (3%) in FTE staffing levels in 2023, returning the total FTE staffing numbers closer to pre-pandemic 2019 levels.
5. Moderate growth in number of new branch locations recorded: Data compiled for the calendar year 2023 shows that 16% of libraries in the LIS sample started construction of at least one new branch location–a total of 25 new branch locations. These new developments average a construction cost of about $695 per square foot.

Direct to Full Text Report
19 pages; PDF.

Filed under: Data Files, Libraries, News