For the third time, the Barrington Area Library has been honored with a coveted four star ranking by Library Journal in its annual Star Libraries report.

For the 2022 report, Library Journal surveyed 5,359 qualifying public libraries in the United States, and 258 received three, four, or five star rankings. This places the Barrington Area Library within the top 4-5% of libraries nationwide, which speaks volumes about the Library’s commitment to innovative and friendly customer service.

This year's ranking is based on data from the Library's 2019-2020 fiscal year, which included three and a half months when the building was closed due to the COVID pandemic. It is not surprising to find that, in this year’s report, the Barrington Area Library ranks particularly high on digital services: electronic circulation, which includes e-books, e-audiobooks, and other digital materials; wifi usage; and website hits.

Rankings are based on eight major service measures – physical material circulation, electronic circulation, number of visits, program attendance, public computer users, wifi sessions, e-resource information retrievals, and website visits – measured per capita. Libraries are also ranked by their annual operating budgets. The Barrington Area Library is the highest ranked four star library within the $5.5-9 million expenditure range.

The Library received its first four star ranking in 2019, after being named a three star library three times since the report was first published in 2009. See the full report on the Library Journal website.

We thank our generous, supportive community for always encouraging us to reach for the highest standards in library service.