Library Card Sign-up Month
No matter what your tastes are, a library card hits all the right notes!
Check out a classic story or hit shuffle and try something new. Find harmony at your library’s book clubs, movie nights, crafting classes, and author talks. A headphone kind of day? Find your focus in a study room or vibe out in a cozy nook. Compose your future with new skills in your library’s makerspace or check out instruments and tools in the Library of Things. No matter what rhythm you find yourself in, there’s a seat in the front row at the library for you.
This September, B sharp, and sign up for a library card!
Celebrate Library Card Sign-up Month 2026 with honorary chair Laufey
Icelandic-Chinese composer, singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Laufey will serve as honorary chair of Library Card Sign-up Month!
This September, Laufey will join ALA and libraries nationwide to give everyone a front row seat to the joy of getting a library card. As honorary chair, Laufey will spotlight how, no matter what your tastes are, a library card hits all the right notes—whether you enjoy reading a classic story, vibing out in a cozy nook, learning new skills in the library’s makerspace, or checking out instruments and tools in the Library of Things.
Laufey, the youngest ever and two-time recipient of the GRAMMY® Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, has captivated a generation with virtuosic songs of love and self-discovery by manifesting her vision of jazz- and classical-infused pop music. An enthusiastic reader, she founded the Laufey Book Club in 2022 helping to foster a global community of readers. Her first children’s picture book, Mei Mei The Bunny, is a New York Times Bestseller and available now from Penguin Workshop, an imprint of Penguin Random House Children’s Books.
Photo: Erlendur Sveinsson
All the Right Merch!
Promote the joy of reading with Library Card Sign-up Month honorary chair Laufey in this new ALA READ® poster.
Bring harmony to your walls with the official Library Card Sign-up Month 2026 poster!
All the Right Notes bookmarks and poster files also available!
A library card hits all the right notes, but so can a shirt, tote, or hoodie from LibraryGiftShop.org!
Laufey Book Club Branded Library Card Partnership
Last year, Laufey partnered with four U.S. public library systems—Boston Public Library, Fulton County (Ga.) Library, LA County Library, and Phoenix Public Library, as well as a library system in Iceland—to launch limited edition Laufey Book Club collaborative library cards and encourage library card sign-ups in celebration of her annual fan activation in August, A Very Laufey Day, and ahead of Library Card Sign-up Month.
For this year's upcoming A Very Laufey Day on Sunday, August 23rd, Laufey in concert with ALA is extending the opportunity for library systems across the US to launch their own Laufey Book Club branded collaborative card with a nationwide launch date of August 23rd.
Libraries interested in launching a collaborative card should complete the enrollment form by July 10.
Tools for Libraries
Coming soon!
Check back for sample press releases, proclamations, and more.
Social Media Graphics
Ideas
- Do you have local influencers? Get them involved in promoting the library.
- Create social media posts for every day of the month to highlight all your library has to offer.
- Get your local government to issue a proclamation about Library Card Sign-up Month using the ALA sample proclamation.
- Get the word out to local press about your plans for Library Card Sign-up Month. ALA has a sample press release template that you can customize to fit your needs.
- Partnering with local businesses to offer a discount with library card or distribute information on the library is quite popular and effective.
Hamilton East Public Library in Noblesville, Indiana won a 2025 John Cotton Dana Award for their Show Your Library Card and Save Campaign. - Partner with local school libraries. Contact your local school librarians and administrators to discuss the possibility of classroom visits at local schools to present all the benefits of having a library card. If you have a mobile way to sign people up for a card, this is a great way to get kids signed up on the spot.
- Try a referral campaign. The Barrie Public Library in Ontario conducted a successful membership campaign in 2023 that promoted the library's offerings and included a referral contest.
Who Do You Want to Reach?
Every library is different, and so is every library’s potential to grow cardholder numbers by identifying and reaching people who are currently missing out.
One great example comes from Amber McNamara, Community Relations Manager at the Cedar Rapids Public Library, who shared her team’s approach during a 2019 webinar (still relevant today!). They used:
- Census and local demographic data to identify underrepresented groups
- Address data from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to find families receiving free books but not yet connected to the public library
Stay in Touch
Follow I Love Libraries, the American Library Association, and your library on social media.
#LibraryCardSignUpMonth
American Library Association: Facebook @AmericanLibraryAssociation | Instagram @americanlibraryassociation | Threads @americanlibraryassociation | Bluesky @amlibraryassoc.bsky.social
I Love Libraries: Facebook @ILoveLibraries | Instagram @ilovelibrariesala | Bluesky @ilovelibraries.bsky.social
We'd like to hear what your library has planned for Library Card Sign-up Month or answer your questions. Contact us at campaign@ala.org.
Library Card Sign-up Month History
The campaign started in 1987 as a response to then Secretary of Education William Bennett, who stated, “Let’s have a campaign … Every child should obtain a library card and use it.” Read a detailed account in this 2015 blog post at the American Library Association Archives, A Library Card for Every Child: Library Card Sign-Up Month, by Cara Bertram.
Library Card Sign-up Month is made possible with support from:
ALA Library Champions support ALA’s efforts in raising public awareness about the value of libraries and librarians.
