Espoo’s library services strengthened its position in the Six Cities comparison
Espoo’s cultural and library services did well in a recent comparison of the services of the six largest cities in Finland (the Six Cities Network). Especially the use of library services continued to grow: last year, the number of visitors, loans and borrowers in Espoo increased more than in most of the other large cities.
The comparison of the cultural and library services of the six largest cities, published in June, shows that Espoo residents are active users of the city’s library and cultural services. The comparison included Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Tampere, Turku and Oulu.
In 2025, the number of people who physically used the libraries in Espoo increased by 2.7 per cent from the previous year. This was the second highest growth rate among the six largest cities. At the same time, there was an increase of 6.7 per cent in the number of loans per resident, which was among the largest increases in the cities compared. There was also a strong increase in the number of active borrowers: in Espoo, the number of borrowers increased by 10 per cent over twelve months.
Children’s literature accounted for 60 per cent of all loans in Espoo – the highest increase among the cities monitored in the comparison. The figure indicates both that families with children use libraries actively and that libraries play an important role in supporting literacy and reading.
The museums in the six largest cities had a total of 5.2 million visits in 2025. Espoo’s museums had an average of 1.23 visits per resident. In Tampere and Helsinki, the corresponding figure was approximately 4 and in Turku approximately 3. Oulu and Vantaa remained clearly below 1 visit per resident. The slight decrease in the number of visitors from previous years in Espoo is explained by the renovation of KAMU WeeGee, which began in 2025.
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Espoo's city orchestra, had a record year with 34,500 people attending its concerts. This is an increase of 24.5 per cent (6,800 people) from the previous year.
Espoo also stood out in the comparison of applications for artist grants. In 2025, Espoo received the largest number of applications for artist grants among the cities, a total of 175 applications. Espoo also received 216 applications for targeted grants intended for individual projects and events. The large number of applications highlights Espoo as an attractive operating environment for artists and is a sign that the city has an active and diverse cultural field.
Read the entire comparison of the cultural and library services of the six largest cities on the service comparison website of the Six Cities Network: Cultural and library services in the six largest cities - Cultural services - Comparison of services in the six largest cities (link in Finnish)(external link, opens in a new window)