Shanghai Library, Public library in Xuhui District, China.

Shanghai Library's main building on Huaihai Road in Xuhui opened in December 1996 on the site of a former dairy plant. Its 106.9-metre tower, shaped like a lighthouse, rises beside a five-storey podium, and the facade carries columns and dougong brackets modelled on ancient Chinese timber construction. Inside are 33 reading rooms, two exhibition halls and a music listening room.

The facility was created in the 1950s by bringing together several libraries and archives into one institution. This consolidation made it possible to concentrate different collections in a single location.

The library's name is shortened to "Shangtu" (上图) in everyday Shanghai speech. Its special collections span ancient rare books, rubbings, letters, family genealogies, Western rare editions, sheet music and modern newspapers; the oldest item is a copy of the Vimalakirti Sutra over 1,400 years old. A United Nations depository collection has sat on the fourth floor since January 1984.

The main building stands at Huaihai Road Middle and Gao'an Road in Xuhui, reached by Shanghai Library station on Metro Line 10. The Xujiahui Library, part of the Xujiahui Origin scenic area, opens to the public Monday to Saturday, 9:00–11:00 and 14:00–16:30, for the exterior and ground-floor lobby only. Off-site stacks at Longwu Road and Xinzhuang receive readers on set weekday mornings and afternoons, by appointment through the general circulation desk.

The main building on Huaihai Road, opened in December 1996, has a 106.9-metre tower shaped like a lighthouse, and its facade copies the giant columns and dougong brackets of ancient Chinese architecture. Its double-layer soundproof glass blocks traffic noise from Huaihai Road.