Brisbane’s libraries recorded more than 5.5 million visits during the 2025-26 financial year, with figures released in August 2026 showing Chermside Library remains one of the city’s busiest branches.
Across Brisbane’s 33 libraries and Mobile Library, visits increased by more than 120,000 compared with the previous financial year. The network also recorded more than 9.2 million loans and downloads from its collections and resources, while use of 24/7 library lockers increased by more than 21 per cent.
Chermside accounted for a substantial share of that activity. The local branch recorded 498,056 visits during 2025-26, putting it second in Brisbane behind Brisbane Square Library, which recorded 533,012 visits. Garden City followed with 461,614 visits, while Sunnybank Hills and Carindale completed the top five.
The latest result follows strong visitation recorded at Chermside earlier in 2026. Between July 2025 and March 2026, the branch logged 373,959 visits, making it the second most visited library across Brisbane’s network during that nine-month period.
That earlier figure was also up by 21,566 visits compared with the same period a year earlier, giving Chermside the largest increase among Brisbane’s individual library branches during that period.
The most borrowed books
The latest 2025-26 figures also provide a glimpse into what Brisbane readers were choosing from library shelves and digital collections.
Michael Connelly’s crime thriller Nightshade was the most borrowed adult fiction title, followed by Richard Osman’s We Solve Murders and Jane Harper’s Last One Out.
In adult non-fiction, The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins topped the list, while Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë was the most borrowed adult e-book. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir was Brisbane’s most borrowed adult audiobook.
Among younger readers, titles from The Hunger Games, The Baby-sitters Club and Diary of a Wimpy Kid series proved popular.
A busy local library
For Chermside, the latest figures add to a broader picture of sustained use at the Hamilton Road branch. Chermside Library is located at 375 Hamilton Road and offers books, digital resources, newspapers, magazines, internet access and meeting rooms. Its collections include Chinese, Italian, Punjabi and Tagalog materials.The branch is open seven days a week, with extended hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Earlier figures from 2026 had already placed Chermside near the top of Brisbane’s library rankings. The new full-year results show that position was maintained across the entire financial year, with almost half a million visits recorded at the local branch.
Read: Chermside Library and Downfall Creek Centre Offer New Recycling Options
The latest figures place Chermside just behind Brisbane Square in overall visitation across the city’s library network, highlighting the continued level of use at one of Brisbane’s busiest suburban branches.
Published 20-August-2026
