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The Nation's Largest Libraries: A Listing By Volumes Held

ALA Library Fact Sheet Number 22

This fact sheet lists the top 100 largest libraries in the United States by volumes held. See below for definitions of "volume" for both public libraries and academic (college and university) libraries.

Number Source Library Name Volumes Held
1 L Library of Congress 33,515,702
2 P+A Boston Public Library (Branches + Research Collections) 24,079,520
3 P+A New York Public Library (Branches + Research Collections) 16,640,294
4 A Harvard University 16,557,002
5 A University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign 12,780,067
6 A Yale University 12,564,157
7 A University of California - Berkeley 11,026,554
8 A Columbia University 10,449,223
9 A University of Texas - Austin 9,853,414
10 A University of Michigan 9,575,256
11 A University of California - Los Angeles 9,045,818
12 P Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County 8,959,303
13 A University of Chicago 8,830,151
14 A Indiana University 8,543,025
15 S Stanford University 8,500,000
16 A University of Wisconsin - Madison 8,310,732
17 A Cornell University 8,036,029
18 A University of Washington 7,549,765
19 P Queens Borough Public Library 7,384,276
20 P Detroit Public Library 7,252,846
21 A Princeton University 7,075,441
22 A University of Minnesota 6,975,576
23 A University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill 6,735,325
24 P County of Los Angeles Public Library 6,434,367
25 A University of Pennsylvania 6,223,214
26 A Ohio State University 6,206,443
27 A Duke University 6,031,761
28 A University of Pittsburgh 5,897,931
29 A University of Arizona 5,794,299
30 P Chicago Public Library 5,743,002
31 A University of Virginia 5,605,891
32 A University of Oklahoma 5,433,036
33 A Pennsylvania State University 5,365,489
34 A Michigan State University 5,292,806
35 A New York University 5,191,617
36 A University of Iowa 5,155,258
37 P Free Library of Philadelphia 4,970,401
38 A Northwestern University 4,930,613
39 P Hennepin County Library 4,793,215
40 A University of Georgia 4,716,401
41 A Rutgers University 4,570,477
42 P Cleveland Public Library 4,565,137
43 P Dallas Public Library 4,511,524
44 P Brooklyn Public Library 4,407,843
45 A Arizona State University 4,393,156
46 A University of Colorado 4,348,639
47 A University of Florida 4,299,252
48 A Washington University - St. Louis 4,281,213
49 A University of Kansas 4,271,113
50 A Brigham Young University 4,168,102
51 A North Carolina State University 4,158,190
52 A University of California - Davis 4,156,170
53 A University of Southern California 4,124,253
54 A Louisiana State University 4,112,774
55 P King County Library System 4,095,811
56 A Texas A&M University 4,088,969
57 P Miami-Dade Public Library System 4,086,243
58 A Tulane University 4,004,458
59 A University of Connecticut 3,982,991
60 P San Diego Public Library 3,956,526
61 A Brown University 3,936,274
62 P Allen County Public Library 3,861,218
63 A State University of New York - Buffalo 3,852,074
64 P Houston Public Library 3,809,224
65 A University of Kentucky 3,784,382
66 A University of Maryland 3,767,653
67 A Temple University 3,761,933
68 A University of Rochester 3,740,714
69 A Johns Hopkins University 3,737,404
70 A University of Cincinnati 3,715,957
71 A University of South Carolina 3,675,054
72 A Wayne State University 3,665,628
73 P Hawaii State Public Library System 3,657,735
74 A University of Massachusetts - Amherst 3,654,181
75 A University of California - San Diego 3,651,393
76 A University of Hawaii 3,588,005
77 P Mid-Continent Public Library 3,565,744
78 A University of Missouri - Columbia 3,523,795
79 A Emory University 3,479,536
80 A University of Notre Dame 3,469,001
81 A Vanderbilt University 3,467,542
82 A Auburn University 3,459,542
83 A Georgetown University 3,431,948
84 P Buffalo & Erie County Public Library 3,431,653
85 A University of Utah 3,418,976
86 A University of Alabama 3,396,810
87 P St. Louis Public Library 3,396,219
88 P Broward County Libraries Division 3,392,940
89 P Cuyahoga County Public Library 3,337,733
90 A University of Tennessee - Knoxville 3,322,418
91 A University of Miami 3,300,370
92 A University of Nebraska - Lincoln 3,247,311
93 A Syracuse University 3,201,031
94 A Southern Illinois University - Carbondale 3,149,701
95 P Jacksonville Public Library 3,147,971
96 A University of California - Irvine 3,145,926
97 A University of New Mexico 3,117,590
98 A Massachusetts Institute of Technology 3,057,604
99 A Florida State University 3,034,491
100 A University of Oregon Libraries 3,006,119


Sources

L=Library of Congress - Annual Report, FY 2009 - Annual Report of the Librarian of Congress: For the Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 2009. Member of Association of Research Libraries (ARL http://www.arl.org).

A= ARL (Association of Research Libraries) Statistics 2008-09.

P= Public Library Data Service Statistical Report 2010. Chicago: Public Library Association (PLA, a division of the American Library Association <http://www.ala.org/pla>), 2010. See the Public Library Data Service Statistical Report web page for more information.

P+A= Public Library Data Service Statistical Report 2010 plus ARL (Association of Research Libraries) Statistics 2008-09: Both the Boston Public Library and the New York Public Library appear on both reports, reporting their public library collection number in thr former and their research library collection number in the latter. For accuracy in counting these institution's true holdings, these collection numbers have been added together.

S= Stanford Facts: Libraries & Computing. Former member of ARL.


Users should be aware that public library and academic library collections are dissimilar.

The ARL academic library study takes its definition of volume from the National Information Standards Organization (NISO): A single physical unit of any printed, typewritten, handwritten, mimeographed, or processed work, distinguished from other units by a separate binding, encasement, portfolio, or other clear distinction, which has been cataloged, classified, and made ready for use, and which is typically the unit used to charge circulation transactions.

The PLDS public library report defines "holdings" on its questionnaire: For the purpose of this data service, holdings will be defined as the number of cataloged items (number of items, NOT number of titles) plus paperbacks and videocassettes even if uncataloged.


NOTE: Previous versions of this fact sheet can be accessed via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine using the original URL <http://www.ala.org/library/fact22.html>. And this URL still works as a "shortcut" link to this web page.


Last updated: September 2011


For more information on this or other fact sheets, including copies of previous versions, contact the ALA Library Reference Desk by telephone: 800-545-2433, extension 2153; fax: 312-280-3255; e-mail: library@ala.org; or regular mail: ALA Library, American Library Association, 50 East Huron Street, Chicago, IL 60611-2795.