The Public Libraries Survey (PLS) is an annual survey of U.S. public libraries. Policymakers and practitioners depend on PLS data to allocate funding and strategically manage libraries. Academics rely on PLS data to conduct original research about public libraries. Data in the PLS come from over 17,000 outlets, and it represents a "gold standard" for national information about public libraries. While the PLS is an invaluable resource for the public library community, other organizations collect data that extends the reach and significance of the PLS. This dataset extends the PLS using information from the Public Library Association (PLA), the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services (ABOS), and the U.S. Census Bureau. PLA data comes from Project Outcome, a free toolkit and online resource for public libraries to document the outcomes associated with public library services. Since 2015, Project Outcome has collected more than 390,000 responses to surveys at 2,200+ libraries in the U.S. and Canada describing the outcomes resulting from library services. The standardized surveys used by Project Outcome have enabled libraries to aggregate their outcome data and analyze trends by topic, type, and program. ABOS data comes from a 2023 national, non-representative survey of public libraries regarding their outreach departments, services, and vehicles. Census data is from the American Community Survey and provides demographic information regarding the geographies that public libraries serve. As part of an Institute of Museum and Library Services grant, the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research curated these data for reuse and mapped them to libraries in the PLS. The result is a combined dataset that documents the impact of library programming and outreach on nationwide communities. To enhance these data, a committee led by the University of Missouri, School of Information Science and Learning Technologies identified supplemental variables (e.g., Census demographic figures) and guided data curation by creating a "data module" specifying curation enhancements.

The purpose of this survey was to identify the cooperative library organizations within the United States and to gather information about these organizations. In this survey the Federal/State Cooperative System for Public Library Data collected 32 basic data items and 7 identifying items for each library. The data items include number of service outlets, full-time equivalent staff, income, operational expenditures, capital outlay, library collection, annual public service hours, library services, and inter-library loans. All 50 states and the District of Columbia are included in this file, which encompasses 8,968 libraries.

Using public libraries from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, via its Public Libraries Survey for 2016, this map shows the population growth or decline within 1 mile's walk of each library. The libraries were downloaded from the PLS site and added as a layer in ArcGIS Online. The layer was next enriched with Esri then-current year population estimates (2017) using an analysis tool in ArcGIS Online, and symbolized based on growth or decline of population within a short walk of each library. Citation: Pelczar, M., Frehill, L. M., Williams, K., Wan, C., & Nielsen, E. (2018). Data File Documentation: Public Libraries in the United States Fiscal Year 2016. Institute of Museum and Library Services: Washington, D.C.

Comprehensive dataset of 177 Public libraries in Vermont, United States as of June, 2025. Includes verified contact information (email, phone), geocoded addresses, customer ratings, reviews, business categories, and operational details. Perfect for market research, lead generation, competitive analysis, and business intelligence. Download a complimentary sample to evaluate data quality and completeness.

The Public Libraries Survey, Fiscal Year 2002 (PLS FY2002), is a study that is part of the Library Statistics program. PLS FY2002 (https://www.imls.gov/research/public_libraries_in_the_united_states_survey.aspx) is a cross-sectional survey that collects annual descriptive data on the universe of public libraries in the U.S. and the Outlying Areas. Information such as public service hours per year, circulation of library books, etc., number of librarians, population of legal service area, expenditures for library collection, staff salary data, and access to technology are collected. The study was conducted using paper surveys. The key respondents in this study were state library agencies. The study's response rate was 98.1 percent. The key statistics produced from PLS FY2002 were about service measures such as access to the Internet, number of users of electronic resources, other electronic services, number of Internet terminals used by staff only, number of Internet terminals used by the general public, reference transactions, public service hours, interlibrary loans, circulation, library visits, children�s program attendance, and circulation of children�s materials. It also includes information about size of collection, staffing, operating income and expenditures, type of geographic service area, type of legal basis, type of administrative structure, and number and type of public library service outlets.

This dataset contains data from the National Center for Education Statistics' Academic Library Survey, which was gathered every two years from 1996 - 2014, and annually in IPEDS starting in 2014 (this dataset has continued to only merge data every two years, following the original schedule). This data was merged, transformed, and used for research by Starr Hoffman and Samantha Godbey.This data was merged using R; R scripts for this merge can be made available upon request. Some variables changed names or definitions during this time; a view of these variables over time is provided in the related Figshare Project. Carnegie Classification changed several times during this period; all Carnegie classifications were crosswalked to the 2000 classification version; that information is also provided in the related Figshare Project. This data was used for research published in several articles, conference papers, and posters starting in 2018 (some of this research used an older version of the dataset which was deposited in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas's repository).SourcesAll data sources were downloaded from the National Center for Education Statistics website https://nces.ed.gov/. Individual datasets and years accessed are listed below.[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Academic Libraries component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2020, 2018, 2016, 2014), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Academic Libraries Survey (ALS) Public Use Data File, Library Statistics Program, (2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, 1996), https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/libraries/aca_data.asp[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Institutional Characteristics component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2020, 2018, 2016, 2014), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fall Enrollment component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2020, 2018, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, 1996), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Human Resources component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2020, 2018, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Employees Assigned by Position component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2004, 2002), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fall Staff component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (1999, 1997, 1995), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7

Comprehensive dataset of 40 Public libraries in Delaware, United States as of July, 2025. Includes verified contact information (email, phone), geocoded addresses, customer ratings, reviews, business categories, and operational details. Perfect for market research, lead generation, competitive analysis, and business intelligence. Download a complimentary sample to evaluate data quality and completeness.

Comprehensive dataset of 228 Public libraries in Arizona, United States as of June, 2025. Includes verified contact information (email, phone), geocoded addresses, customer ratings, reviews, business categories, and operational details. Perfect for market research, lead generation, competitive analysis, and business intelligence. Download a complimentary sample to evaluate data quality and completeness.

(Link to Metadata) Public Libraries in Vermont. A core set of data listing each public library in Vermont was downloaded from the State of Vermont Department of Libraries from its Public Library Statistics web page. Each library was located against the EmergencyE911_ESITE data set.

The Public Libraries Survey, Fiscal Year 2006 (PLS FY2006), is a study that is part of the Library Statistics program. PLS FY2006 (https://www.imls.gov/research/public_libraries_in_the_united_states_survey.aspx) is a cross-sectional study that includes information on population of legal service area, service outlets, public service hours, library materials, total circulation, circulation of children�s materials, reference transactions, library visits, children�s program attendance, interlibrary loans, electronic services and information, full-time-equivalent staff, operating revenue and expenditures, and capital expenditures. The study was conducted using paper surveys, web-based surveys, and email. The key respondents in this study were state library agencies. The study's response rate was 97.7 percent. The key statistics produced from PLS FY2006 were about service measures such as access to the Internet, number of users of electronic resources, number of internet terminals used by the general public, reference transactions, public service hours, interlibrary loans, circulation, library visits, children�s program attendance, and circulation of children�s materials. It also includes information about size of collection, staffing, operating revenue and expenditures, type of geographic service area, type of legal basis, type of administrative structure, number and type of public library service outlets, and square footage of outlets.

This dataset reports annual operating & capital expenditures by the Asotin County (WA) Library District. The Library District reports the figures annually to the Public Library Survey, administered by the Washington State Library in cooperation with the U. S. Institute of Museum and Library Services. Data reflects actual figures reported during the particular year and are not adjusted for inflation. For a detailed glossary of terms and more information about the survey, visit the Statistics page at the Washington State Library: https://www.sos.wa.gov/library/libraries/libdev/publications.aspx#WAStats

The Public Libraries Survey (PLS) provides statistics on the status of public libraries in the United States. It is a voluntary survey conducted annually by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 survey is the 27th in the series. The data files include all public libraries identified by state library administrative agencies in the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the outlying areas of American Samoa and Guam. The reporting unit for the survey is the administrative entity, defined as the agency that is legally established under local or state law to provide public library service to the population of a local jurisdiction. In this survey, the term public library means an administrative entity. For Fiscal Year 2015, IMLS collected the following information via a web-based survey for the PLS: Library Data - Data on each public library, such as its name and address, population of legal service area, service outlets, collections, full-time-equivalent staff, and operating revenue and expenditures. State characteristics data, including the reporting period starting and ending dates, the state total population estimate, and the total unduplicated population of legal service areas for the state. These data are contained in dataset 1 and include 9,251 records; 9,231 were public libraries and 20 were administrative entities that closed or temporarily closed for FY 2015. State Data - Each state library agency reported these data on the "State Characteristics" record because they are not library-level data. These data are in dataset 2 and include 53 records, one for each state and outlying area. Outlet Data - Data on each public library service outlet, such as its name and address, type, county location, metropolitan status, square footage, public service hours per year, and number of weeks a library outlet is open. These data are in dataset 3 and include 17,408 total records. The file includes identifying information and a few basic data items for public library service outlets (central, branch, bookmobile, and books-by-mail-only outlets). The file includes 17,328 outlets in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, 8 outlets in the outlying areas, and 72 records for outlets that were reported as closed or were temporarily closed for FY 2015. This data collection is useful to researchers, journalists, the public, and policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels. These data are used by federal, state and local officials, professional associations, and local practitioners for planning, evaluation, and policy making.

Context

Increasing numbers of public libraries are eliminating overdue fines for their patrons. The American Library Association passed a resolution in 2019 recognizing that the “imposition of monetary library fines creates a barrier to the provision of library and information services” (p. 2). Using data retrieved from both the Urban Libraries Council and End Library Fines in August 2019, we found that the number of libraries instituting fine-free policies has nearly doubled each year since 2015. How might such a policy change affect patrons, circulation, and library budgets?

Content

In January and February 2020, we submitted FOIA requests using MuckRock's platform to 52 public libraries who have eliminated fines in the United States. We requested information related to patrons, circulation, and budgets. The COVID-19 pandemic hindered our ability to retrieve data, but we were able to gather information from some of the libraries. This dataset contains total circulation data by month for 24 months pre-fine-elimination and 12 months post-fine-elimination for 16 public libraries in the U.S.

Acknowledgements

We wouldn't be here without the generous help of many members of the public library community. Thank you to all the libraries who assisted with our data collection efforts.

This research was funded in part by a grant from Kaggle.

Comprehensive dataset of 53 Public libraries in Hawaii, United States as of June, 2025. Includes verified contact information (email, phone), geocoded addresses, customer ratings, reviews, business categories, and operational details. Perfect for market research, lead generation, competitive analysis, and business intelligence. Download a complimentary sample to evaluate data quality and completeness.

This dataset provides information on 18,791 in United States as of June, 2025. It includes details such as email addresses (where publicly available), phone numbers (where publicly available), and geocoded addresses. Explore market trends, identify potential business partners, and gain valuable insights into the industry. Download a complimentary sample of 10 records to see what's included.

This data set consists of data on academic libraries in the United States from 1996-2018. Multiple data sources from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) were merged. File Format: csvFile Size: 26648 KBLanguage: EnglishCoverage: Time period covered: 1996-2018.Codebook: See the codebook for Merged NCES Academic Library Survey 1996 - 2016 Dataset, which is included as a supplemental file here: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/lib_datasets/1/Sources: All data sources were downloaded from the National Center for Education Statistics website https://nces.ed.gov/. Individual datasets and years accessed are listed below.[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Academic Libraries component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2018, 2016, 2014), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Academic Libraries Survey (ALS) Public Use Data File, Library Statistics Program, (2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, 1996), https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/libraries/aca_data.asp[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Institutional Characteristics component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2018, 2016, 2014), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fall Enrollment component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2018, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, 1996), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Human Resources component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2018, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Employees Assigned by Position component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (2004, 2002), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7[dataset] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fall Staff component, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), (1999, 1997, 1995), https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/login.aspx?gotoReportId=7

Public Library Survey (PLS) provides national descriptive data on the status of public libraries in the United States & its territories.

Find key information on library systems around the United States.

These data include imputed values for libraries that did not submit information in the FY 2012 data collection. Imputation is a procedure for estimating a value for a specific data item where the response is missing.

Download PLS data files to see imputation flag variables or learn more on the imputation methods used in FY 2012 at https://www.imls.gov/research-evaluation/data-collection/public-libraries-survey/explore-pls-data/pls-data

This dataset reports annual attendance at Asotin County (WA) Library District programs. The library district reports the figures annually to the Public Libraries Survey, administered by the Washington State Library in cooperation with the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services. For a detailed glossary of terms and more information about the survey, visit the Statistics page at the Washington State Library: https://www.sos.wa.gov/library/libraries/libdev/publications.aspx#WAStats

This dataset reports annual operating revenues for the Asotin County (WA) Library District. The Library District reports figures annually to the Public Libraries Survey administered by the Washington State Library in cooperation with the U. S. Institure of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Data reflects actual figures reported during the particular year and are not adjusted for inflation. For a detailed glossary of terms and more information about the survey, visit the Statistics page at the Washington State Library: https://www.sos.wa.gov/library/libraries/libdev/publications.aspx#WAStats.