Providence Public Library
Providence Public Library is a nonprofit public library based in Providence, Rhode Island, serving a legal service area of 59,190 residents from a single building. Among the 45 profiled systems in Rhode Island, it leads on operating spending, public computers and print volumes and ranks first for operating spending per resident, but ranks second-lowest for local government's share of operating revenue.
Among profiled systems serving 50,000 to 99,999 residents, it ranks first for public computers per resident, sixth for print volumes per resident and seventh for library floor space per resident. Against the median system of its size class, it records 2.7 times the paid staff per resident and 50% fewer physical checkouts per resident.
Providence against the 559 systems of its size class
Providence in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 88,698
- Physical checkouts
- 101,073
- …of children's materials
- 27,728
- Electronic checkouts
- 51,364
- …of e-books
- 26,980
- …of e-audio
- 24,257
- Registered users
- 14,624
- Program sessions
- 2,663
- Program attendance
- 28,162
- Print volumes
- 299,442
- Audio items (physical)
- 8,792
- Video items (physical)
- 10,129
- Public computers
- 383
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 2,600
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 61.2
- Operating spending
- $9 million
- …on books and other materials
- $360,627
- Overdue fines on print items
- charged
Where Providence gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $8.4 million, or $142.10 per resident. The local-government share sits 59 percentage points below the combined share for the 45 profiled systems in Rhode Island. Federal money made up 4.0% of the total.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Nonprofit association libraries of similar size in other states
Of these six systems, three record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Joseph T. Simpson Public Library in Pennsylvania.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rosenberg Library | Galveston, TX | 60,897 | 3.58 | 2.26 | $90.23 |
| Pottsville Free Public Library | Pottsville, PA | 60,113 | 0.46 | 0.54 | $15.33 |
| Joseph T. Simpson Public Library | Mechanicsburg, PA | 59,915 | 2.61 | 8.50 | $19.16 |
| Pike County Public Library | Milford, PA | 58,535 | 1.05 | 1.90 | $12.00 |
| Altoona Area Public Library | Altoona, PA | 57,314 | 1.74 | 1.90 | $19.83 |
| Lepper Library | Lisbon, OH | 57,268 | 0.52 | 0.94 | $9.58 |
Who comes to Providence programs
Programs for adults drew 81% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 11 people each.
Nearest in size within Rhode Island
- Warwick Public Library · Warwick · 73,192 residents
- East Providence Public Library · East Providence · 47,139 residents
- Pawtucket Public Library · Pawtucket · 75,604 residents
- Woonsocket Harris Public Library · Woonsocket · 43,240 residents
The Providence building
The single building covers 116,000 square feet, 1.96 square feet per resident against a median of 0.62 for the size class. It is open 50 hours a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Providence Public Library | Central library | Providence | 50 | 116,000 |