Research Library Seating and Facilities Inventory 2026

Amy Hoseth, Colorado State University Libraries, and Martha Kyrillidou, QualityMetrics LLC, are collaborating to explore changes to the seating capacity of research libraries. We are launching this survey to gather data from US and Canadian research libraries related to the seating availability in library buildings and the shift among different types of space. Some of the data collected by this survey serves as an update to the ARL facilities inventory data collected in 2015, in a more streamlined and simplified fashion. The survey is configured to be completed in one seating so feel free to print the page and come back to it with the data at hand.

We plan to share the results with participating libraries. If libraries are interested in collecting and comparing data at the building level, we will also capture this interest for future work with that subset of libraries.

When answering the questions below, please provide an estimate if an exact figure is unavailable. Responses are due no later than Tuesday, March 31.

We will hold a webinar on Tuesday, April 28, at 3:00 ET / 2:00 CT / 1:00 MT/ 12:00 PT to discuss the results with all the participating libraries.

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Amy Hoseth, Colorado State University Libraries
Martha Kyrillidou, QualityMetrics LLC

1. Institution Name *This question is required.

2. Institution Contact *This question is required.

3. Email *This question is required. This question requires a valid email address.

4. Total number of user seats managed by the library
Include all library‑managed seats (classrooms, auditoriums, labs), even if accessible only part of the day.
Exclude staff‑only/administrative seats.
Exclude seats managed by non-library units within library spaces. This will be reported in the next question. This question requires a valid number format.

5. Total number of user seats managed by non‑library units within library facilities.
Include seats overseen by campus partners (e.g., writing centers, tutoring or advising services).
Exclude any seats managed by the library.

This question requires a valid number format.

6. What academic unit partners, if any, are part of your library space? Describe any recent shifts or changes in these partnerships as they relate to the management of user seats.

7. Net assignable square footage
What is the net assignable square footage for all library areas, using the categories below? Estimates are acceptable if exact values are unknown; include notes in the next question for anything you are unable to report.
Question 7 is the sum of 7a+7b+7c+7d.

7a: Seating/Study areas (open study areas, commons, cafes, etc.)
7b: Classrooms/large meeting spaces (includes labs, auditoriums)
7c: Collections (include high density, on campus and off campus shelving; for shared shelving, report only your library’s portion)
7d: All other (such as central and departmental administrative space and areas not directly related to libraries such as museums)
	Total : 0

8. Net assignable square footage notes.
You can explain here if there are any officially reported library square feet that are used by partners and reported above.

9.

What changes have you made to your library facilities over the past five years?

Tell us about updates you made before, during, or after COVID‑19, and why you made them.

10. Please share any other thoughts you have about library seating or recent changes in academic library spaces.

Research Library Seating and Facilities Inventory 2026

Welcome!