On November 19, the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) released a report presenting the results of its 2024 Library Insights Survey, which charts the successes and challenges North American public libraries have seen in service to their communities since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was circulated to 185 member libraries across the United States and Canada this past summer, asking for information about annual budgets, staffing, operations, and visitors for calendar year 2023. ULC received responses from 115 systems, comprising a total of 2,260 locations and a combined population of more than 87.5 million.

First launched in 2023, the survey provides a data-informed snapshot of trends in library operations, services, and programming. This year’s report incorporated data from the earlier survey to compare pre-pandemic numbers from 2019 with statistics from 2022 and 2023, looking at changes and inflection points in a range of areas. Results were categorized into themes of Attraction and Attendance, Location Experience and Use of Space, Library Programs and Services, and Staffing and Budget.

Among ULC members “there has been a renewed desire to dig a little bit deeper into how patrons are engaging with library programs and services,” Femi Adelakun, ULC director of research and data, told LJ. “That’s the approach we came at the survey from—figuring out the variables and the data sets that we need to collect to start stitching together the picture.”

The Library Insights Survey follows the basic data collection measures used by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Public Libraries Survey, but with a more streamlined set of questions. “We narrowed our ask to only cover trends associated with how people experience space when they come into library locations,” said Adelakun, “keeping it short and specific to show us more of how users are engaging.”

Survey readers are encouraged to use the findings as benchmarks to assess their own service delivery, program design, staffing, and budgets in relation to their peers, and use that data as they advocate for resources and funding.

“One of the most valuable pieces for our members is that they’re able to utilize it as they’re talking with their boards, city council, county boards within their library community,” ULC President and CEO Brooks Rainwater told LJ, “so they’re able to tell that full story of what’s happening within the public library field, how we’re bouncing back post-pandemic, and the trajectory ahead, and then being able to do that comparative analysis with like-sized libraries.”

USAGE SHIFTS

In-person visits, while still down approximately 35 percent from pre-pandemic levels, continue to rebound from the lows of 2022. Responding libraries reported a 24 percent increase in 2023 over the previous year.

But while visits may have decreased, the use of meeting rooms and e-resources has reached a new high. Between 2022 and 2023, the average number of room reservations increased by a notable 52 percent—an 18 percent uptick over the previous year, despite the drop in attendance levels.

“That, for me, that was the strongest takeaway from the analysis that we pieced together, because it also connects to other realities in society,” said Adelakun. “A lot of us are working remotely, not everyone has the resources to have a room for an office or a large enough space, or to take care of the whole family and accommodate office activities. So, some people still need space to go to for work, and the library seems to be meeting that demand.”

In-library computer use fell sharply, with 2023 levels showing a 69 percent decline from 2022 and approximately 79 percent from 2019—in the largest libraries, serving populations of more than 700,000, that drop from pre-pandemic days grew to 84 percent. However, surveyed libraries noted an average 24 percent increase in wireless sessions from 2022 to 2023. “Internet is still being utilized quite a quite a lot, but [the survey] is showing that during the pandemic, more and more people got their own devices when they weren’t able to use computers within libraries,” noted Rainwater.

Program offerings and attendance are on the upswing as well, after falling off dramatically from pre-pandemic levels. In 2023, total programs offered rose approximately 42 percent from 2022 numbers, and the average program attendance increased by 53 percent. But those numbers still indicate major changes on both the library and patron sides. Programs and program attendance are down from 2019 by 58 percent and 38 percent, respectively. Mid-sized libraries, serving populations between 350,000 and 700,000, saw the greatest reduction in programming, offering 68 percent fewer programs in 2023 compared to 2019 numbers.

The report also clearly illustrates how the pandemic changed borrowing habits. The use of e-resources grew by 11 percent between 2022 and 2023, a 40 percent overall increase in e-usage since 2019. At the same time, circulation of physical materials dropped: 2023 numbers were seven percent lower than those for 2022 and a full 30 percent lower than in 2019.

STAFFING AND BUDGETS

As patron behavior and demands have shifted, staffing and budgets have adjusted accordingly. While overall staffing levels are close to pre-pandemic numbers, this is not evenly distributed. Some systems reported 40 percent fewer FTE staff, and others 40 percent more.

With the return of community members to library facilities has come a rise in security incidents, which increased by 29 percent from 2022 to 2023, and seven percent from 2019—notable because library visits are still below pre-pandemic levels. The smallest urban libraries, those with a local service area of less than 350,000, saw the greatest increase of incident reports from 2019 levels.

Average security budgets have increased significantly in response; in 2023 libraries spent nearly 31 percent more on security than in 2019. The largest libraries saw the greatest increase in security budgets, spending 45 percent more over 2019 levels.

Libraries are also spending money on capital projects. In 2023, 16 percent reported starting construction on at least one new branch location.

LOOKING TOWARD NEXT YEAR’S SURVEY

ULC will be conducting the Library Insights Survey again next year to look at data for calendar year 2024. While some of the more granular questions may change slightly, said Rainwater, general categories will remain the same so that they can be compared to those in previous surveys.

“This is going to be an annual piece that we do going forward, so that we’re able to really analyze that trend data,” he explained. “What will be interesting going into next year is that three years out from the pandemic, I feel like we’ll be in a space where we won’t need to measure against the pre-COVID times—that we’ll have enough of a trend line at that point to really show year-over-year, and a trajectory of where we’re going within the public library field.”

That data extends beyond public libraries as well, noted Adelakun. “When you start looking at a set of variables, they start to tell a very impactful picture related to how people are using space,” he said. “And it also rings true for other industries that are in the business of gathering people—your coffee shops, public spaces, places where people go, even office buildings and coworking flexible spaces.”