List of largest libraries

Last updated

This sortable list of largest libraries includes libraries that, as measured in 2008 or subsequently, store 10 million or more items. All figures are based on data published by the libraries themselves. As there are no universally accepted standards for measuring stock, libraries may have counted their holdings in different ways, and the figures given may not be directly comparable.

Contents

List

NameCountryLocation and notesCatalogued size
(number of items)		Visitors per yearBudgetStaff
British Library Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom London and Boston Spa [1] 200 million+ [2] [3] [4] 1.75 million [5] £162.5 million [6] 1,977 [6]
Library of Congress Flag of the United States.svg United States Washington, D.C. 178 million+ [7] 1.9 million [8] US$875.4 million [8] 3,149 [8]
Nation's Library Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey Ankara 141.7 million [9] 1.9 million [10] US$24.25 million1,389
Russian State Library Flag of Russia.svg Russia Moscow 126.1 million [11] 498,000 [12] ₽2.7 billion [12] 1,613 [12]
Shanghai Library Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China Shanghai 58 million [13]
New York Public Library Flag of the United States.svg United States 92 locations in the New York City boroughs of Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island
(2nd largest number of locations in North America). [14] 		55 million [15] 18 million [15] US$250 million [15] 3,000 [15]
National Library of China Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China Beijing 44.24 million [16] 5.2 million [17] 1,365 [17]
National Diet Library Flag of Japan.svg Japan Tokyo and Kyoto 44.1 million [18] 791,370 [18] ¥21.8 billion [18] 908 [18]
German National Library Flag of Germany.svg Germany Leipzig and Frankfurt 43.7 million [19] 350,713 [19] €57.6 million [19] 639 [19]
Royal Library, Denmark Flag of Denmark.svg Denmark Copenhagen and Aarhus 42.5 million
(physical items, excl. digital) [20] 		1.45 million [20] 523.8 million kr [20] 800+ [21]
Bibliothèque nationale de France Flag of France.svg France Paris 41.66 million [22] 1.3 million [23] €254 million [24] 2,668 [25]
University of California Libraries Flag of the United States.svg United States Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz.
Restricted to students, faculty or visitors who buy a membership. [26] 		40.8 million [26] US$295 million [26] 2,000+ [26]
University of Illinois Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Urbana, Illinois, restricted to students and faculty. [ citation needed ]38 million [27] US$48.7 million [28]
National Library of Russia Flag of Russia.svg Russia Saint Petersburg 36.5 million [29] 1 million [29] ₽569.2 million1,850
Bavarian State Library Flag of Germany.svg Germany Munich 34.4 million1.1 million €59.1 million805
Biblioteca Nacional de España Flag of Spain.svg Spain Madrid 33.1 million [30] €29.2 million [31] 482 [31]
Library and Archives Canada Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada Ottawa, Halifax, Winnipeg, Vancouver. Largely a free reference library.27 millionCAD165 million853
Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences Flag of Russia.svg Russia Saint Petersburg 26.5 million [32]
Berlin State Library Flag of Germany.svg Germany Berlin 23.4 million [33] 1.4 million [33]
Boston Public Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Boston, Massachusetts at 26 locations. [34] 22.4 million [35] US$38.9 million [36]
New York State Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Albany, New York at 1 location. [ citation needed ]20 million [37]
Harvard Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Cambridge, Massachusetts, restricted to students and faculty or their guests.[ citation needed ]18.9 million [38] 922 [38]
National Library of Sweden Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden Stockholm 18 million [39] 364.5 million kr [40]
University of Michigan Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Ann Arbor, Michigan, at one location largely. Free borrowing for staff, students, and native and indigenous people.
All others may purchase borrowing rights. [41] 		16.1 million [42]
University of Toronto Libraries Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada Toronto, at 40 locations largely restricted to university staff and students.[ citation needed ]16 million [43] CA$125 million [44]
Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine Kyiv 15.5 million [45] 500,000 [45] 50.3 million ₴ [46] 900 [45]
Yale Library Flag of the United States.svg United States New Haven, Connecticut, one location for students, staff and no free borrowing access to the public.[ citation needed ]15.2 million [47]
National Library of Iran Flag of Iran.svg Iran Tehran 15.0 million [48]
University of Chicago Library Flag of the United States.svg United States Chicago 14.2 million [49] 1.1 million [49]
National Library of Scotland Flag of Scotland.svg Scotland Edinburgh and Glasgow 14 million
Bodleian LibraryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom Oxford 13.8 million printed items, plus special and digital collections [50] 1.7 million readers [51] , 865,191 visitors [52] .£57.8 million [51] 562.76 (FTE) [51]
Hong Kong Public Library Flag of Hong Kong.svg Hong Kong Hong Kong 11.36 million [53] HK$776.2 million [54]
Toronto Public Library Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada 100 locations in Toronto [55] 10.5 million [55] 13.4 million [55] CA$ 252,300,000 [56] 2,500 [57]
National Library of Poland Flag of Poland.svg  Poland Warsaw 10.6 million [58]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "British Library at Boston Spa". bl.uk. Archived from the original on 9 August 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  2. ↑ "A few of our favourite things about the British Library". bl.uk. 17 August 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
  3. ↑ "BL Accounts 2019" (PDF). bl.uk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  4. ↑ "BL Exhibition Notes". bl.uk. Archived from the original on 9 August 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
  5. ↑ "The British Library Annual Report and Accounts 2008/09 – Performance". 2009. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  6. 1 2 "The British Library Annual Accounts 2008/09" (PDF). 2009. Archived from [WEB_ACCESSIBLE_British_Library_Annual_Report_and_Accounts_FY_2024_25.pdf the original] (PDF) on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2010.{{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  7. ↑ "General information". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on 28 February 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 "General Information – About the Library (Library of Congress)". Library of Congress . Archived from the original on 28 February 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  9. ↑ "About the Library". 4 August 2025. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  10. ↑ "Approximately 2 million people visited the Presidential Nation's Library last year". 2025. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  11. ↑ "2023 in Figures. Brief Statistical Reference" (PDF). Russian State Library. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  12. 1 2 3 "Статистическая справка о работе Российской государственной библиотеки (2021 год) (по состоянию на 01.01.2022)" (PDF). 1 January 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  13. ↑ "关于上图 – 上海图书馆". Shanghai Library. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  14. ↑ "About The New York Public Library". The New York Public Library. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
  15. 1 2 3 4 "The New York Public Library's 2009 Annual Report" (PDF). 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  16. ↑ "馆藏一览". 中国国家图书馆 National Library of China. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  17. 1 2 "ANNUAL REPORT TO CDNL 2010" (PDF). 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  18. 1 2 3 4 "National Diet Library Statistics". 2017. Archived from the original on 7 July 2014. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  19. 1 2 3 4 "Jahresbericht 2021" (in German). Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. 2022. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  20. 1 2 3 "Årsrapport 2017 for Det Kgl. Bibliotek" (PDF) (in Danish). Det Kgl. Bibliotek. 5 March 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 June 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  21. ↑ "Job og karriere" (in Danish). Det Kgl. Bibliotek. Archived from the original on 13 March 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  22. ↑ "La BnF en chiffes". 31 December 2022. Archived from the original on 9 December 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  23. ↑ "BnF – La BnF en chiffres – Publics" (in French). 14 October 2009. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  24. ↑ "BnF – La BnF en chiffres – Budget" (in French). 14 October 2009. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  25. ↑ "BnF – La BnF en chiffres – Personnels" (in French). 23 December 2010. Archived from the original on 9 November 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
  26. 1 2 3 4 "Facts and Figures – UC Libraries". Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  27. ↑ "Collections – University of Illinois Library". www.library.illinois.edu. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  28. ↑ "Budget Summary for Operations FY2023". Office of Business and Financial Services University of Illinois System. p. 22. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  29. 1 2 "Российская национальная библиотека: Статистические данные за 2005 – 2009 гг". 2011. Archived from the original on 9 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  30. ↑ "Biblioteca Nacional de España. Memoria 2015" (PDF) (in Spanish). 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 December 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  31. 1 2 "Biblioteca Nacional de España. Memoria 2015" (PDF) (in Spanish). 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 December 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  32. ↑ "Единый фонд системы Библиотеки Российской Академии наук – главный информационный ресурс". Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  33. 1 2 "Zahlen und Fakten Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin" (in German). 2009. Archived from the original on 20 June 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  34. ↑ "Locations". Boston Public Library. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
  35. ↑ "The Boston Public Library. An Overview: 2010" (PDF). 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  36. ↑ "BPL – Community". 9 March 2010. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  37. ↑ "About the New York State Library". 20 March 2010. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  38. 1 2 "Harvard Library Annual Report FY2013". 2013. Archived from the original on 9 June 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  39. ↑ "Our Collections – Kungliga biblioteket". Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  40. ↑ "Kungl. bibliotekets årsredovisning 2015" (PDF). National Library of Sweden (in Swedish). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  41. ↑ "Alumni, Guests, and Native and Indigenous Peoples Borrowing | University of Michigan Library". www.lib.umich.edu. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  42. ↑ "Statistical Highlights". 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  43. ↑ "LibQUAL comments | University of Toronto Libraries". onesearch.library.utoronto.ca. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  44. ↑ University of Toronto (16 February 2023). "Budget Report 2023-24 and Long-Range Budget Guidelines 2023-24 to 2027-28" (PDF).
  45. 1 2 3 "Історичні відомості. Національна бібліотека України імені В. І. Вернадського". Archived from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  46. ↑ "Про Державний бюджет України на 2010 рік| від 27 April 2010 № 2154-VI (Стор. 16 з 28)" (in Ukrainian). 17 June 2010. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  47. ↑ "Yale University Library FAQ FY2017". 2017. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  48. ↑ "National Library of Iran". Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  49. 1 2 "About the University of Chicago Library". www.lib.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  50. ↑ "History of the Bodleian". visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  51. 1 2 3 Bodleian Communications (2024). "Bodleian Libraries Annual Report 2022-2023" (PDF). Bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  52. ↑ "Oxford University attractions welcomed over 3.5 million visitors in 2024". www.glam.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  53. ↑ "Cultural services". Annual Report 2012-13. Leisure and Cultural Services Department. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  54. ↑ p. 200, "Head 95 - Leisure and Cultural Services Department" (PDF). 2011–12 Budget. John Tsang . Retrieved 2 June 2011.
  55. 1 2 3 "About the Library". TPL: Toronto Public Library. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
  56. ↑ "Library Finance". TPL: Toronto Public Library. Archived from the original on 28 May 2025. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
  57. ↑ "TPL Workforce Overview" (PDF). torontopubliclibrary.typepad.com. 24 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
  58. ↑ "Sprawozdanie biblioteki narodowej za rok 2024" (PDF) (in Polish). Warsaw: Biblioteka Narodowa. 2025. p. 24.
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