Many academic and research libraries are in the midst of what may ultimately be a major transition for various parts of their collection--a shift from print to electronic format. Libraries that had long subscribed only to print versions of journals are, in increasing numbers, licensing electronic versions to replace the print. What effects will this transition have on library operations and on nonsubscription expenditures? To answer this question, data was collected on staff activities and costs from 11 U.S. academic libraries. A life-cycle analysis to study the longer-term cost implications of the transition was performed. Findings suggest that nonsubscription costs are lower, on a per-title basis, in electronic than in print format. The per-title effect is more pronounced at smaller libraries, mainly because they license relatively large collections of electronic titles in comparison to the size of their print collections. Relative to collection size, however, the cost benefits of the electronic format exist across the board.