Missoula Public Library
Missoula Public Library is a city-county public library system based in Missoula, Montana, serving a legal service area of 117,922 residents through seven library buildings. Among the 79 profiled systems in Montana, it leads on total visits, number of library buildings, public computers and print volumes.
By population served it is the second-largest of the 79 profiled systems in Montana. Against the median system of its size class, it records 2.1 times the visits per resident and 70% more public computers per resident.
Missoula against the 360 systems of its size class
Missoula since FY 2019
Visits were 44% above the FY 2019 count of 349,787 (size-class median: −29%). Physical checkouts moved 28% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Missoula programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 56% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 39 people each.
Missoula in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 505,223
- Physical checkouts
- 483,258
- …of children's materials
- 201,570
- Electronic checkouts
- 292,948
- …of e-books
- 87,698
- …of e-audio
- 144,457
- Registered users
- 51,083
- Program sessions
- 678
- Program attendance
- 26,747
- Print volumes
- 168,059
- Audio items (physical)
- 10,519
- Video items (physical)
- 13,506
- Public computers
- 114
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 9,100
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 51.5
- Operating spending
- $4.1 million
- …on books and other materials
- $256,068
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Missoula gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $4.1 million, or $34.52 per resident. The local-government share sits 11 percentage points below the combined share for the 77 profiled systems in Montana. No federal operating revenue was reported.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Missoula, building by building
The seven buildings cover 123,400 square feet in total, 1.05 square feet per resident against a median of 0.51 for the size class. The largest building is Missoula Public Library at 108,000 square feet; the smallest is Lolo School and Community Library at 1,200. The longest hours are at Missoula Public Library, 71 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missoula Public Library | Central library | Missoula | 71 | 108,000 |
| Big Sky Branch Library (Missoula Co.) | Branch | Missoula | 20 | 2,300 |
| Frenchtown School and Community Library (Missoula Co.) | Branch | Frenchtown | 20 | 4,500 |
| Lolo School and Community Library | Branch | Lolo | 20 | 1,200 |
| Potomac Branch Library (Missoula Co.) | Branch | Potomac | 4 | 2,400 |
| Seeley Lake Branch Library (Missoula Co.) | Branch | Seeley Lake | 20 | 3,500 |
| Swan Valley Community Library-Missoula | Branch | Condon | 20 | 1,500 |
City-county libraries of similar size in other states
None of these six systems records more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Carver County Library System in Minnesota.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Napa County Library | Napa, CA | 129,715 | 2.43 | 5.14 | $80.63 |
| Robeson County Public Library | Lumberton, NC | 116,438 | 0.60 | 0.74 | $12.81 |
| Carver County Library System | Chaska, MN | 113,332 | 2.76 | 9.28 | $43.64 |
| Madison County Library System | Canton, MS | 112,511 | 1.96 | 2.07 | $21.99 |
| Goleta & Santa Ynez Valley Libraries | Goleta, CA | 109,750 | 2.66 | 4.59 | $22.56 |
| Bismarck Veterans Memorial Public Library | Bismarck, ND | 98,458 | 2.64 | 4.27 | $33.58 |
Nearest in size within Montana
- Flathead County Library Kalispell · Kalispell · 96,606 residents
- Billings Public Library · Billings · 157,509 residents
- Bozeman Public Library · Bozeman · 84,410 residents
- Great Falls Public Library · Great Falls · 81,475 residents