Salaries and wages of professional staff members represented from 15 percent to 37 percent of total library spending for the institutions that provided data to the Association of Research Libraries for 2015-16. Library materials consumed from 28 percent to 66 percent of total spending that year. The association’s Library Investment Index measures the relative size of university libraries.
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| 1. | Harvard U. | $119,614,204 | $37,446,389 | $48,125,422 | 735 | 5.25 |
| 2. | Yale U. | $93,128,408 | $20,738,438 | $44,299,185 | 489 | 3.71 |
| 3. | U. of Michigan | $74,702,421 | $16,005,871 | $27,118,176 | 545 | 2.46 |
| 4. | Columbia U. | $68,922,024 | $22,163,447 | $32,034,983 | 476 | 2.36 |
| 5. | New York U. | $64,888,392 | $19,303,907 | $30,812,232 | 411 | 2.11 |
| 6. | U. of Toronto | $65,954,319 | $16,722,465 | $24,696,193 | 526 | 2.01 |
| 7. | Pennsylvania State U. | $59,242,593 | $13,976,085 | $21,743,273 | 531 | 1.60 |
| 8. | U. of California at Berkeley | $55,984,751 | $19,447,917 | $23,953,938 | 379 | 1.56 |
| 9. | Princeton U. | $55,151,886 | $12,055,877 | $27,965,158 | 316 | 1.50 |
| 10. | U. of California at Los Angeles | $58,114,938 | $14,735,512 | $16,035,360 | 403 | 1.45 |
| 11. | Cornell U. | $53,893,306 | $15,607,939 | $21,562,802 | 378 | 1.37 |
| 12. | U. of Texas | $52,916,981 | $11,402,039 | $21,576,253 | 403 | 1.26 |
| 13. | Texas A&M U. | $46,860,833 | $10,534,213 | $25,680,255 | 266 | 1.04 |
| 14. | U. of Southern California | $46,485,868 | $11,328,513 | $22,714,047 | 226 | 0.98 |
| 15. | U. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | $47,304,323 | $13,405,693 | $19,172,663 | 367 | 0.98 |
| 16. | Ohio State U. | $47,357,887 | $9,882,371 | $20,273,110 | 301 | 0.96 |
| 17. | Duke U. | $45,267,778 | $13,393,698 | $22,215,462 | 302 | 0.94 |
| 18. | U. of Pennsylvania | $46,905,095 | $10,849,341 | $18,365,980 | 333 | 0.91 |
| 19. | Emory U. | $45,113,520 | $14,574,283 | $19,572,442 | 276 | 0.90 |
| 20. | U. of Washington | $44,407,936 | $13,066,264 | $16,819,463 | 340 | 0.79 |
| 21. | U. of Minnesota | $43,705,622 | $9,947,159 | $20,364,809 | 253 | 0.79 |
| 22. | Johns Hopkins U. | $42,324,171 | $10,628,281 | $20,223,320 | 229 | 0.73 |
| 23. | U. of Virginia | $42,110,533 | $11,771,428 | $15,864,465 | 274 | 0.65 |
| 24. | Indiana U. | $41,276,553 | $10,474,456 | $18,584,221 | 309 | 0.65 |
| 25. | U. of North Carolina | $39,810,165 | $9,612,670 | $16,703,881 | 308 | 0.53 |
| 26. | Rutgers U. | $39,609,942 | $9,403,463 | $14,463,801 | 311 | 0.48 |
| 27. | Northwestern U. | $37,242,131 | $9,991,555 | $16,659,280 | 273 | 0.41 |
| 28. | U. of Chicago | $36,498,434 | $5,747,781 | $20,033,015 | 225 | 0.39 |
| 29. | Michigan State U. | $35,657,445 | $7,071,698 | $18,300,088 | 218 | 0.33 |
| 30. | U. of Iowa | $34,759,938 | $7,441,330 | $19,827,622 | 200 | 0.32 |
| 31. | U. of Alberta | $34,763,680 | $5,569,084 | $20,183,511 | 184 | 0.30 |
| 32. | U. of Wisconsin | $35,306,184 | $11,218,364 | $12,884,918 | 269 | 0.27 |
| 33. | U. of Pittsburgh | $32,791,499 | $7,463,297 | $17,414,575 | 252 | 0.18 |
| 34. | North Carolina State U. | $33,500,778 | $8,940,867 | $11,859,057 | 217 | 0.13 |
| 35. | U. of British Columbia | $31,909,644 | $8,598,695 | $13,545,292 | 273 | 0.08 |
| 36. | George Washington U. | $33,053,461 | $6,489,854 | $11,979,308 | 267 | 0.08 |
| 37. | U. of Arizona | $31,702,671 | $6,030,521 | $15,418,985 | 179 | 0.08 |
| 38. | U. of California at San Diego | $32,395,074 | $8,831,464 | $10,067,069 | 250 | 0.05 |
| 39. | U. of Florida | $31,617,448 | $6,315,540 | $13,762,452 | 280 | 0.04 |
| 40. | Brigham Young U. | $30,768,402 | $8,582,412 | $13,006,457 | 175 | 0.02 |
| 41. | Washington U. in St. Louis | $29,876,582 | $7,470,192 | $14,953,214 | 201 | 0.00 |
| 42. | McGill U. (Quebec) | $28,826,609 | $5,792,926 | $16,740,993 | 162 | -0.04 |
| 43. | Purdue U. | $28,635,073 | $6,856,017 | $14,978,634 | 170 | -0.07 |
| 44. | U. of Maryland | $28,977,173 | $9,004,213 | $12,265,789 | 200 | -0.07 |
| 45. | Georgetown U. | $28,336,692 | $7,446,931 | $12,643,534 | 189 | -0.12 |
| 46. | U. of Miami | $27,976,620 | $6,328,406 | $13,761,290 | 184 | -0.13 |
| 47. | U. of Tennessee | $27,489,120 | $6,689,987 | $14,710,552 | 212 | -0.13 |
| 48. | U. of Notre Dame | $27,624,867 | $7,333,691 | $13,312,469 | 216 | -0.14 |
| 49. | Vanderbilt U. | $27,611,582 | $6,051,711 | $12,888,980 | 153 | -0.16 |
| 50. | U. of Oklahoma | $26,385,104 | $5,874,537 | $14,435,222 | 159 | -0.20 |
| 51. | U. of Georgia | $26,968,733 | $5,213,122 | $13,376,678 | 244 | -0.20 |
| 52. | Texas Tech U. | $26,789,996 | $5,973,642 | $12,423,021 | 226 | -0.21 |
| 53. | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | $25,100,826 | $7,943,633 | $10,774,136 | 157 | -0.30 |
| 54. | Brown U. | $24,836,552 | $5,419,930 | $12,725,463 | 144 | -0.31 |
| 55. | Arizona State U. | $25,315,616 | $4,295,324 | $12,281,916 | 194 | -0.31 |
| 56. | Boston College | $24,385,107 | $6,359,893 | $13,088,222 | 149 | -0.31 |
| 57. | Boston U. | $24,636,753 | $7,002,495 | $11,618,638 | 193 | -0.32 |
| 58. | Virginia Tech | $24,676,033 | $4,653,267 | $11,699,973 | 139 | -0.34 |
| 59. | U. of Utah | $25,090,472 | $5,069,481 | $9,809,895 | 232 | -0.35 |
| 60. | U. of Kentucky | $23,831,246 | $6,758,827 | $10,722,135 | 188 | -0.37 |
| 61. | U. of Houston | $22,896,883 | $5,502,984 | $12,299,500 | 140 | -0.40 |
| 62. | Syracuse U. | $23,351,056 | $5,705,607 | $10,920,132 | 168 | -0.41 |
| 63. | U. of Calgary | $23,450,294 | $5,104,838 | $10,662,148 | 197 | -0.41 |
| 64. | U. of Rochester | $22,608,238 | $5,985,363 | $11,068,500 | 152 | -0.44 |
| 65. | U. of Connecticut | $22,678,931 | $6,037,074 | $10,414,130 | 116 | -0.44 |
| 66. | U. of Colorado | $22,486,420 | $4,535,193 | $11,721,745 | 165 | -0.45 |
| 67. | U. of New Mexico | $23,248,927 | $4,096,015 | $9,462,959 | 158 | -0.46 |
| 68. | U. of South Carolina | $22,331,315 | $5,265,038 | $10,408,551 | 176 | -0.47 |
| 69. | U. of Delaware | $21,813,494 | $4,924,106 | $11,891,186 | 137 | -0.47 |
| 70. | U. of Alabama | $21,683,658 | $5,298,028 | $11,223,730 | 142 | -0.49 |
| 71. | Dartmouth College | $21,902,194 | $5,053,634 | $10,794,655 | 168 | -0.49 |
| 72. | U. of Ottawa | $21,539,575 | $3,790,401 | $12,187,968 | 153 | -0.49 |
| 73. | U. of Cincinnati | $21,504,607 | $6,266,493 | $10,524,251 | 129 | -0.49 |
| 74. | Iowa State U. | $21,293,162 | $3,286,455 | $12,883,873 | 119 | -0.50 |
| 75. | Temple U. | $21,414,972 | $6,117,289 | $10,256,308 | 140 | -0.51 |
| 76. | York U. (Ontario) | $21,358,353 | $5,724,839 | $9,675,950 | 165 | -0.52 |
| 77. | U. of California at Irvine | $21,607,732 | $5,095,505 | $8,977,308 | 160 | -0.53 |
| 78. | U. of California at Davis | $21,164,572 | $5,280,904 | $9,595,749 | 134 | -0.54 |
| 79. | U. at Buffalo | $20,605,760 | $7,041,592 | $9,611,300 | 123 | -0.54 |
| 80. | Florida State U. | $20,599,073 | $5,724,348 | $10,410,115 | 171 | -0.55 |
| 81. | U. of Hawaii | $20,312,544 | $6,631,116 | $9,238,600 | 154 | -0.57 |
| 82. | U. of Saskatchewan | $20,044,220 | $4,980,671 | $10,660,724 | 134 | -0.58 |
| 83. | Western U. (Ontario) | $19,848,512 | $4,190,572 | $11,702,548 | 156 | -0.58 |
| 84. | Tulane U. | $19,813,096 | $3,457,123 | $12,075,750 | 127 | -0.58 |
| 85. | U. of Manitoba | $20,256,119 | $4,618,387 | $9,842,399 | 180 | -0.59 |
| 86. | U. of Kansas | $20,383,677 | $4,023,706 | $9,752,144 | 173 | -0.59 |
| 87. | U. of Massachusetts at Amherst | $20,421,944 | $5,472,493 | $8,313,994 | 121 | -0.60 |
| 88. | Wayne State U. | $19,521,624 | $4,590,853 | $9,970,666 | 141 | -0.62 |
| 89. | Rice U. | $18,572,248 | $4,276,488 | $12,198,661 | 106 | -0.63 |
| 90. | U. of Oregon | $19,760,899 | $5,434,710 | $7,356,857 | 163 | -0.65 |
| 91. | Oklahoma State U. at Stillwater | $19,580,998 | $3,839,428 | $8,424,165 | 134 | -0.66 |
| 92. | U. of California at Santa Barbara | $20,305,398 | $4,040,168 | $5,812,069 | 177 | -0.67 |
| 93. | Colorado State U. | $18,917,911 | $4,443,978 | $8,481,464 | 150 | -0.68 |
| 94. | U. of Illinois at Chicago | $18,893,517 | $4,415,191 | $8,464,529 | 142 | -0.68 |
| 95. | U. of Louisville | $17,713,391 | $4,194,794 | $10,250,633 | 111 | -0.71 |
| 96. | U. of Missouri | $18,420,190 | $3,132,897 | $8,614,783 | 138 | -0.72 |
| 97. | Laval U. (Quebec) | $17,996,106 | $3,827,184 | $9,133,073 | 191 | -0.72 |
| 98. | U. of Nebraska | $17,987,948 | $3,600,582 | $8,907,856 | 140 | -0.73 |
| 99. | Georgia Institute of Technology | $17,141,026 | $3,478,323 | $9,044,584 | 111 | -0.76 |
| 100. | Stony Brook U. | $15,616,048 | $5,757,712 | $9,120,709 | 85 | -0.80 |
| 101. | Queen’s U. (Ontario) | $15,723,420 | $3,510,983 | $8,487,584 | 109 | -0.84 |
| 102. | McMaster U. (Ontario) | $15,552,026 | $3,053,209 | $8,709,885 | 117 | -0.85 |
| 103. | Case Western Reserve U. | $14,843,510 | $3,990,333 | $7,487,844 | 90 | -0.90 |
| 104. | U. of Waterloo (Ontario) | $14,900,202 | $2,559,745 | $7,567,201 | 121 | -0.91 |
| 105. | Auburn U. | $14,396,353 | $3,332,463 | $8,174,930 | 77 | -0.91 |
| 106. | Louisiana State U. | $13,878,412 | $3,232,804 | $7,248,927 | 105 | -0.96 |
| 107. | State U. of New York at Albany | $13,054,033 | $4,188,791 | $6,613,731 | 88 | -0.99 |
| 108. | U. of California at Riverside | $13,493,549 | $3,895,938 | $5,067,218 | 93 | -1.01 |
| 109. | Washington State U. | $12,887,544 | $2,884,963 | $6,353,744 | 107 | -1.02 |
| 110. | U. of Guelph (Ontario) | $12,662,643 | $3,720,922 | $6,214,567 | 109 | -1.03 |
| 111. | Ohio U. | $12,777,023 | $3,149,604 | $5,799,749 | 89 | -1.04 |
| 112. | Kent State U. | $12,028,175 | $3,968,353 | $5,711,162 | 79 | -1.06 |
| 113. | Southern Illinois U. | $11,491,100 | $2,407,403 | $6,397,919 | 88 | -1.09 |
| 114. | Howard U. | $8,333,150 | $1,920,094 | $4,072,356 | 63 | -1.29 |
| | Average for 114 libraries | $30,293,507 | $7,494,439 | $13,871,547 | 209 | 0.00 |
Note: The ARL Library Investment Index is a measure of the relative size of university libraries that are members of the Association of Research Libraries. The higher the index score, the larger the library’s size, relative to that of other members. Relative size is determined by a combination of four variables: total library expenditures, salaries and wages of professional staff, total library-materials expenditures, and total number of professional and support-staff members. The index does not attempt to measure a library’s services, quality of collections, or success in meeting the needs of users. Figures for the 15 Canadian libraries on the list are expressed in U.S. dollars. The index scores are rounded to two decimal places, which may give the appearance of identical scores for some institutions; however, the full index score is unique for each institution. The index is available online at www.arlstatistics.org/analytics.
Source: Association of Research Libraries</small></p>
