The biggest bookstores and libraries in North America

While some have closed, there are still many bookstores and libraries to support

Bigger is not always better. But when it comes to bookstores, square footage tells something about the situation.

At one time, there were many mega-bookstores across North America. A 154,250-square-foot Barnes & Noble store on Fifth Avenue in New York City was not only the largest in North America, but among the most expansive in the world. It was a community center and networking place, as much as a site to browse books, magazines, newspapers, DVDs, CDs, and more.

But in 2014, that store closed. The same year, the 64,000-square-foot World’s Biggest Bookstore in Toronto — one of Canada’s largest — also shut its doors. Borders, a competitor of Barnes & Noble that also operated Waldenbooks, closed in 2011.

While many bookstores that remain often serve as community centers as well, the online platforms and escalating real estate costs have led to numerous brick sites slimming down. That’s what makes it interesting to discover what bookstores are still as big as ever.

These days, Powell’s City of Books in Portland, Ore., is the largest private bookstore in North America that I have located. The 68,000-square-foot flagship store occupies a full city block in downtown Portland. The family-owned business began in 1971 and has added several other stores in Oregon, surviving through the pandemic, Great Recession, and other trying times.