Analysis
NAICS 519210 is the 2022 national industry for libraries and archives, part of 51921 (Libraries and Archives). Census lists 10 example activities under it in the official index.
Its index entries, the activities Census uses to assign businesses to this code, include archives, bookmobiles, centers for documentation (i.e., archives) and circulating libraries, among 10 in all.
Census lists 4 related activities that belong elsewhere, most often in 512199, 512290, 519290 and 512120. Businesses that do several things are classified by their primary activity, the one that generates the most value, so check those boundaries before settling on this code.
For example, providing stock film and video footage (via motion picture and video tape libraries) to the media, multimedia, and advertising industries are classified in 512199 (Other Motion Picture and Video Industries) instead.
County Business Patterns publishes no national count for it, either because the code is out of the survey's scope or because the figures are suppressed to protect individual businesses.
Official definition
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing library or archive services. These establishments are engaged in maintaining collections of documents (e.g., books, journals, newspapers, and music) and facilitating the use of such documents (recorded information regardless of its physical form and characteristics) as required to meet the informational, research, educational, or recreational needs of their user. These establishments may also acquire, research, store, preserve, and generally make accessible to the public historical documents, photographs, maps, audio material, audiovisual material, and other archival material of historical interest. All or portions of these collections may be accessible electronically.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.
Not this code if…
| The business mainly does | Use instead |
|---|---|
| Providing stock film and video footage (via motion picture and video tape libraries) to the media, multimedia, and advertising industries | 512199 Other Motion Picture and Video Industries |
| Providing stock music to the media, multimedia, and advertising industries | 512290 Other Sound Recording Industries |
| Providing stock photos to the media, multimedia, and advertising industries | 519290 Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services |
| Acquiring distribution rights and distributing motion pictures and videos to motion picture theaters, television networks and stations, other media broadcast and streaming outlets, and exhibitors | 512120 Motion Picture and Video Distribution |
Index entries (10)
- Archives
- Bookmobiles
- Centers for documentation (i.e., archives)
- Circulating libraries
- Film archives
- Lending libraries
- Libraries (except motion picture stock footage, motion picture commercial distribution)
- Motion picture film libraries, archives
- Music archives
- Reference libraries