Presidential library statistics at a glance
Presidential libraries are not uniform archives with a single job. The NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ shows that each library blends textual records, audiovisual materials, artifacts, building space, and museum traffic in a way that makes the system look more like a national network of research institutions than a single category of museum.
Table of contents
- Fast facts
- What the collection numbers show
- Library size and space
- Museum visitors in FY 2024
- Comparing the biggest holdings
- What the attendance numbers suggest
- Why the data matters
Fast facts
Key takeaway: the library system is broad enough that the biggest collections are not defined by one metric alone. A library can lead in textual records, artifacts, square footage, or museum visitors without leading in the others (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Big number: the largest artifact count in the dataset belongs to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, with 106,473 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Another standout: the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum recorded 239,868 museum visitors in FY 2024, the highest attendance figure in the dataset (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Scale note: the largest building in the dataset is the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum at 166,573 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
What to notice first
- Several libraries hold very large textual archives, but the counts vary widely.
- Electronic records matter for some later administrations and appear in large volumes for multiple libraries.
- Artifact counts are often the most visually striking totals, but they do not track directly with visitor attendance.
- The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum has an attendance note of n/a in FY 2024 after transfer to the George W. Bush Foundation on January 1, 2023 (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
What the collection numbers show
The most useful way to read presidential library statistics is to separate the collections by type. Textual records, audiovisual records, electronic records, and artifacts answer different questions.
Textual records measure the paper and manuscript core of the archive. Audiovisual records capture the visual and sound material that increasingly defines modern historical documentation. Artifacts show how many physical objects are preserved alongside the paper trail.
Textual records are still the backbone
The dataset shows that textual holdings remain massive across the system:
- Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 27,546 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum: 25,100 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 23,955 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum: 23,371 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum: 20,712 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
At the lower end of the dataset, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum still holds 6,050 cubic feet of textual records, while the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library holds 5,361 cubic feet and the Joseph R. Biden Presidential Library holds 2,833 cubic feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
A compact comparison of collection types
| Library | Textual records | Audio-visual records | Electronic records | Artifacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum | 10,656 cubic feet | 1,109 cubic feet | not listed | 34,329 artifacts |
| Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum | 10,069 cubic feet | 790 cubic feet | not listed | 32,648 artifacts |
| Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum | 15,152 cubic feet | 1,291 cubic feet | not listed | 64,912 artifacts |
| John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum | 20,712 cubic feet | 2,390 cubic feet | 960 GB | 29,557 artifacts |
| Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum | 23,955 cubic feet | 3,337 cubic feet | 20 GB | 93,063 artifacts |
| William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum | 33,196 cubic feet | 2,361 cubic feet | 4 TB | 106,473 artifacts |
| George W. Bush Presidential Library | 26,763 cubic feet | 1,292 cubic feet | 80 TB | 47,121 artifacts |
| Barack H. Obama Presidential Library | 15,022 cubic feet | 623 cubic feet | 250 TB | 34,369 artifacts |
| Donald J. Trump Presidential Library | 5,361 cubic feet | 4 cubic feet | 250 TB | 6,572 artifacts |
| Joseph R. Biden Presidential Library | 2,833 cubic feet | 12 cubic feet | 515 TB | 5,813 artifacts |
That comparison makes one pattern obvious: the later libraries in the dataset tend to emphasize electronic records far more heavily than earlier ones, while the artifact totals vary for reasons that are not captured by one number alone (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Library size and space
Building size gives another layer of context. A larger facility does not always mean more records, but it does suggest how much space is devoted to archival, museum, and visitor functions.
Largest libraries by square footage
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum: 166,573 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum: 85,592 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 147,400 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 143,836 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- George W. Bush Library: 60,972 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
The smallest buildings in the dataset are still substantial institutions. The George W. Bush Library is 60,972 square feet, the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum is 68,698 square feet, and the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum is 69,049 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
What the space figures imply
The square footage data suggests that presidential libraries are designed as mixed-use spaces rather than pure archive warehouses.
- Larger buildings often align with a stronger public museum presence.
- Moderate-sized buildings can still house very large collections.
- Space and holdings do not increase in lockstep.
- Visitor activity can be high even where the square footage is not the largest.
Museum visitors in FY 2024
Museum attendance adds the public-facing side of presidential library statistics. The FY 2024 figures make it clear that the most visited libraries are not necessarily the most artifact-rich or the largest by square footage.
FY 2024 attendance leaders
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 239,868 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum: 121,022 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum: 101,632 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 98,788 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum: 97,973 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
The middle of the attendance range is also active. George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum recorded 86,015 museum visitors, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum recorded 79,767, and William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum recorded 60,660 in FY 2024 (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Lower-attendance libraries still matter
Lower attendance does not mean low significance. The dataset includes:
- Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum: 29,005 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum: 4,934 museum visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
These numbers sit far below the top attendance figure, but they still reflect active public use, archival interest, and museum engagement.
Attendance snapshot table
| Library | FY 2024 museum visitors |
|---|---|
| Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum | 239,868 |
| John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum | 121,022 |
| Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum | 101,632 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum | 98,788 |
| Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum | 97,973 |
| George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum | 86,015 |
| Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum | 79,767 |
| Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum | 55,745 |
| Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum | 57,790 |
| William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum | 60,660 |
| Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum | 29,005 |
| Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum | 4,934 |
The spread is large: the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum drew nearly five times as many visitors as the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, and far more than the lower-attendance libraries in the dataset (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Comparing the biggest holdings
Some of the most interesting stories in the dataset come from comparing the libraries with the largest counts in each category.
Largest textual holdings
- William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum: 33,196 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 23,955 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- George W. Bush Presidential Library: 26,763 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 27,546 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum: 25,100 cubic feet of textual records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
The Clinton library stands out because it pairs the largest textual total with the highest artifact count in the dataset (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Largest artifact totals
- William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum: 106,473 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 93,063 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum: 72,388 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum: 64,912 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum: 61,271 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
This ranking shows that artifact-rich collections are not confined to the most recent libraries. Some earlier libraries, especially Reagan and Nixon, carry unusually large physical collections (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Electronic records expand dramatically in later libraries
The electronic record figures are where the modern archival shift becomes most visible:
- Barack H. Obama Presidential Library: 250 TB of electronic records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Donald J. Trump Presidential Library: 250 TB of electronic records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- Joseph R. Biden Presidential Library: 515 TB of electronic records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- George W. Bush Presidential Library: 80 TB of electronic records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum: 960 GB of electronic records (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ)
The Biden library has the largest electronic record total in the dataset, while the Obama and Trump libraries are tied at 250 TB each (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
A quick ranking of electronic records
- Joseph R. Biden Presidential Library: 515 TB
- Barack H. Obama Presidential Library: 250 TB
- Donald J. Trump Presidential Library: 250 TB
- George W. Bush Presidential Library: 80 TB
- William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum: 4 TB
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum: 960 GB
- Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum: 250 GB
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: 20 GB
- George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum: 20 GB
This is one of the clearest evidence points in the dataset that presidential library statistics are changing as the record format changes.
What the attendance numbers suggest
Museum attendance and collection size do not always move together. Some libraries with large artifact totals have moderate visitor counts, while some of the best-attended museums are not the largest by square footage.
A few direct contrasts make that clear:
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum leads attendance with 239,868 visitors and also has 93,063 artifacts (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum leads artifact count with 106,473 artifacts and recorded 60,660 visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum has the largest building at 166,573 square feet and recorded 121,022 visitors (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is relatively small by the collection totals in this dataset but still recorded 4,934 visitors in FY 2024 (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Reading the system as a whole
The data suggests three broad ideas:
- Some libraries are archive-heavy, with very large textual and artifact holdings.
- Some libraries are public-attraction-heavy, with strong annual visitor counts.
- Some libraries are increasingly digital, with electronic record totals that now dominate the scale conversation.
Those patterns matter because they show presidential libraries are not interchangeable. Each institution sits at a different point between archive, museum, public destination, and digital repository (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
Why the data matters
Presidential library statistics are useful because they turn a vague idea into measurable categories. Once the collection types are separated, the differences between libraries become much clearer.
Fast facts to remember:
- The biggest artifact count in the dataset is 106,473 at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- The biggest FY 2024 attendance figure is 239,868 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- The biggest building in the dataset is the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum at 166,573 square feet (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
- The biggest electronic record total is 515 TB at the Joseph R. Biden Presidential Library (NARA Presidential Libraries FAQ).
For readers comparing presidential libraries, these figures offer a simple rule: the most important number depends on what you are trying to measure. Size, collection depth, digital volume, and public attendance all tell different parts of the story.