Current Affairs

New From Ithaka S+R: US Library Survey 2025: Under Pressure

May 14, 2026

US Library Survey 2025: Under Pressure was published today (May 14, 2026) by Ithaka S+R.

The report was written by Ellen Carroll, Tracy Bergstrom, and Ioana G. Hulbert,

Key Findings

Leaders are operating under sustained financial and staffing constraints. Mirroring previous cycles, the majority of respondents cite a lack of financial resources as the primary constraint on their ability to make changes in their libraries. Anticipated cancellations of journal packages alongside reductions in staff mean that libraries are also limited in their ability to sustain core functions.

AI is reshaping priorities, but adoption remains uneven. Leaders anticipate increased demand for AI literacy instruction, staff reskilling, and research integrity safeguards. However, many libraries have not yet integrated AI into their internal operations, citing limited staff capacity or expertise, ethical concerns, and competing priorities.

While most leaders feel confident in their ability to articulate the library’s value proposition, fewer believe this value is recognized by senior administrators. Additionally, only 31 percent agree that they are involved in key decision-making processes at the campus level.

Student learning and information literacy are near-universal priorities, but confidence in impact lags. Nearly all leaders identify fostering student learning, promoting critical thinking, and supporting information literacy as core priorities. Smaller shares, however, express confidence in the library’s effectiveness or in its recognition as a campus leader in these areas.

Investments in open access initiatives have declined. Since the survey was last administered, the share of leaders prioritizing transformative agreements declined from 38 percent to 26 percent. The share prioritizing transitioning their spending from subscriptions to open investments also declined steeply from 45 percent to 23 percent.

Concerns about user data privacy are increasing. Half of leaders are concerned about third-party access to individual-level data, reaching the highest point since we first asked this question in 2019.

Roughly one-third of respondents plan to hire staff for AI and machine learning roles. Additional areas of expected growth include instruction and information literacy, assessment, student success, scholarly communication, and research data management.