2026 editionNortheastPop. 13,059,432Capital Harrisburg2nd state, admitted 1787Cook PVI Even
Is Pennsylvania a Good Place to Live? Pennsylvania Rankings, Cost of Living, Crime & Taxes
Pennsylvania ranks #25 of 50 with a composite score of 56.9 and a B grade, strongest in transportation (#9) and weakest in fiscal health (#41). The median household earns $77,545 (4% below the national median), homes typically cost $290,401 (21% below the national average), and violent crime is 227 per 100,000 (31% below the national average).
Buy the house you could not afford across the river, 3.7x income against a national 4.6x, then get nickel-and-dimed: a school district property bill, a municipal wage tax, and Philadelphia's own. That suits retirees, because the state leaves pension and retirement income alone, and New Yorkers willing to swap the train for the Turnpike.
Pennsylvania by the numbers
Six measures every state is judged on, each with Pennsylvania's rank of 50 and the national figure beside it.
Sources, latest releases: Census Bureau ACS (income), Zillow Research (home value), BEA Regional Price Parities (cost index), FBI state crime estimates (crime), BLS LAUS (unemployment), WalletHub tax burden study (taxes). Rank 1 is the best value in each measure: highest income, lowest cost, lowest crime.
Read the Pennsylvania overview
Pennsylvania scores above the national average in 6 of 11 categories and ranks #7 of 11 states in the Northeast, behind 6 regional neighbors. Its biggest edge over the country is violent crime rate (227, 31% below the national average); its biggest shortfall is unemployment rate (4.3%, 0.3 points above the national average). That mix of top-10 finishes (1) and bottom-10 finishes (1) is why the composite alone undersells the tradeoffs a mover here faces.
Where does Pennsylvania rank in each category?
All 11 categories that make up the composite, heaviest weight first. Pennsylvania is top 10 in 1 and bottom 10 in 1.
| Category | Score | Rank | Grade | Weight | US avg | The numbers behind it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economy | 39.2 | #38 of 50 | C | 15% | 47.1 | Its unemployment rate is 4.3% and median household income is $77,545. |
| Safety | 78.1 | #15 of 50 | B+ | 12% | 68.9 | The FBI estimates 226.8 violent crimes and 1,323.8 property crimes per 100,000 residents. |
| Health | 59.6 | #21 of 50 | B | 12% | 54.4 | Life expectancy is 77.3 years, 34.2% of adults have obesity, and 5.8% of residents are uninsured. |
| Education | 65.4 | #15 of 50 | B+ | 12% | 57.5 | Eighth graders average 276 in NAEP math and 259 in reading, and the high school graduation rate is 87%. |
| Affordability | 66.7 | #27 of 50 | C+ | 10% | 65.2 | Typical home value $290,401 (3.7x median income); cost of living index 97.6 (100 = US); center-based infant care $15,302 a year. |
| Fiscal Health | 45.6 | #41 of 50 | C | 8% | 58.1 | It carries $4,120 of debt per resident, has 62% of pensions funded, and holds a AA- credit rating. |
| Growth | 26.8 | #39 of 50 | C | 7% | 38.8 | Population grew 0.1% last year; Census net domestic migration is -0.2 per 1,000 residents (the Moving section below uses IRS household counts, a different series). |
| Transportation | 55.9 | #9 of 50 | A | 7% | 49.8 | The average commute is 27.1 minutes, 4.2% of workers use public transit, and 13.8% work from home. |
| Livability | 34.4 | #22 of 50 | B | 7% | 34.3 | It has 1.704 restaurants and 0.025 arts venues per 1,000 residents, plus 0.164 bars and 0.164 social associations per 1,000. |
| Outdoor Access | 19.8 | #31 of 50 | C+ | 6% | 29.4 | 5.6% of its land is public, with 3.09 recreation facilities per 10,000 residents. |
| Environment | 38.0 | #30 of 50 | C+ | 4% | 42.5 | Its median air quality index is 40, 6% of its electricity is renewable, and its FEMA disaster risk score is 13.4. |
Weight, US average and the evidence sentence for each category are shown on wider screens.
Grades follow rank, not score: A+ for ranks 1–5, A for 6–10, B+ for 11–18, B for 19–26, C+ for 27–34, C for 35–42, D for 43–48, F for 49–50. US avg is the mean score of the 50 states. Click a category for its 50-state ranking.
Category shape
Pennsylvania's 11 category scores. A balanced state fills the wheel evenly; Pennsylvania bulges toward transportation and dips at fiscal health.
How expensive is Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania's cost of living index is 97.6 against a national baseline of 100, 2% below the national average and #28 of 50 (1 = cheapest). The typical home is worth $290,401 (21% below the national average); buying it takes an income of about $82,894, $5,349 more than the median household earns. Inside the state the spread is wide: among tracked cities, Altoona is cheapest (index 89.5) and Drexel Hill priciest (102.6).
Housing market snapshot · August
Warm marketRanked #36 of 50 most expensive by typical value and #15 on price relative to income (1 = most affordable). The median household is $5,349 short of the income needed to buy the typical home.
Full Pennsylvania housing market: 26-year chart, rent vs. buy, cities →What a household keeps at $75,000
| Household | Pennsylvania | Median state | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family of fourTwo adults, two kids, one in daycare | −$11,625 | −$11,758 | #25 of 50 |
| Single adultOne-bedroom rent, no childcare | +$33,202 | +$31,418 | #23 of 50 |
| Retiree coupleOwn the home, no payroll tax | +$37,129 | +$35,970 | #23 of 50 |
Take-home pay minus housing, childcare, utilities, groceries and transport for a $75,000 household, from the affordability engine. Positive = money left over; negative = costs exceed take-home. Rank 1 = most left over.
What are taxes like in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania's tax mix is high property tax, with income and sales taxes in the middle of the pack. The total state and local tax burden comes to 8.58% of income, 0.2 points below the national average (#21 of 50, 1 = lightest). Property tax is 1.41% of home value (#39), and combined sales tax averages 6.34% (#17).
Tax Foundation (rates) and WalletHub tax burden study (burden as a share of income), latest releases. Rank 1 = lowest. Income tax is the top marginal rate including typical local taxes where they apply.
Can the state pay its bills?
Fiscal health scores 45.6 out of 100, #41 of 50. Pew Fiscal 50, Census state finances and the rating agencies, latest releases.
Is Pennsylvania safe?
Pennsylvania reports 227 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, 31% below the national average and #14 of 50 (1 = safest). Property crime runs 1,324 per 100,000, 14% below the national average (#17 of 50). The safety score is 78.1 out of 100, #15 of 50; among tracked cities, Bethel Park has the lowest violent crime rate.
Pennsylvania vs. the United States, per 100,000 residents
FBI state crime estimates, latest release. US is the mean of the 50 states; blue = below it, terracotta = above it. Florida and North Dakota use the FBI's prior-year estimate because their latest year is based on limited data.
Safest tracked cities in Pennsylvania
| City | Population | Violent / 100K | Property / 100K |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethlehem | 77,956 | 197 | 1,241 |
| Reading | 95,242 | 258 | 1,285 |
| Allentown | 125,976 | 264 | 1,432 |
| Erie | 93,850 | 315 | 2,056 |
| Scranton | 76,033 | 327 | 1,321 |
Lowest violent crime among the 20 Pennsylvania cities we track with 50,000 or more residents. City rates come from each city's police agency and are not strictly comparable across agencies.
What is the job market like in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania's unemployment rate is 4.3%, 0.3 points above the national average and #33 of 50 (1 = lowest), and the median household earns $77,545, 4% below the national median. Real GDP grew +2% in the latest year (#23 of 50) and GDP per capita is $64,785, 1% above the national average. The population is growing 0.1% a year, 0.4 points below the national average. The economy score is 39.2 out of 100, #38 of 50.
Census Bureau ACS (income), BLS LAUS (unemployment), BEA (GDP), Census population estimates (growth), latest releases.
Highest-paying tracked occupations in Pennsylvania, adjusted for cost of living
| Occupation | Cost-adjusted | Median wage | Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family Medicine Physicians | $242,841 | $237,984 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington |
| Lawyers | $167,174 | $163,831 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington |
| Software Developers | $140,923 | $138,105 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington |
| Computer Systems Analysts | $118,034 | $115,673 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington |
| General & Operations Managers | $107,178 | $105,034 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, latest release, for the 20 occupations we track. Cost-adjusted wage divides the metro median by its cost of living index.
How are Pennsylvania's schools and healthcare?
Pennsylvania's education score is 65.4 out of 100, #15 of 50. Eighth graders average 276 in NAEP math (#18 of 50) and 259 in reading (#19 of 50), and the high school graduation rate is 87%, 1.4 points above the national average (#22 of 50).
Best public school cities we track, by graduation rate
| City | Grad rate | Students / teacher | Per pupil |
|---|---|---|---|
| State College | 96% | 11.5 | $21,884 |
| Bethel Park | 96% | 13.2 | $21,188 |
| Levittown | 92.4% | 14.3 | $18,481 |
NCES Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey, latest release. Cities with at least three schools.
Pennsylvania is #21 of 50 for health, with a life expectancy of 77.3 years, 0.4 years above the national average. 34.2% of adults have obesity (#24 of 50) and 5.8% of residents have no health insurance (#14 of 50). The health score is 59.6 out of 100, weighted 12% of the composite.
CDC National Center for Health Statistics (state life tables), CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (obesity), and Census Bureau American Community Survey (health insurance), latest releases.
Who is moving to Pennsylvania, and who is leaving?
Pennsylvania lost a net 12,095 households to other states in the latest IRS release: 123,625 moved in and 135,720 moved out, -0.9 per 1,000 residents (#37 of 50). Arriving households report an average income of $76,366 against $85,642 for those leaving. The Census Bureau's American Community Survey, which counts people rather than households, shows a net -17.1K people (234.6K in, 251.7K out, ±19.3K), consistent with the IRS direction.
Where they come from
- 1New York20,643 · $70,945
- 2New Jersey18,767 · $83,155
- 3Florida11,056 · $72,512
- 4Maryland8,992 · $73,860
- 5Virginia5,558 · $82,399
Households and their average income. Click a state to compare it head to head; households arrived from these states in the latest IRS release.
Where they go
- 1Florida16,395 · $120,372
- 2New Jersey16,075 · $86,597
- 3New York14,412 · $75,262
- 4Maryland7,619 · $72,615
- 5North Carolina7,061 · $80,277
Households and their average income. Click a state to compare it head to head; households left for these states in the latest IRS release.
Where should you live in Pennsylvania?
By composite score, the best of the 20 Pennsylvania cities we track are Bethel Park (72.4), Levittown (62.1), and State College (62). Altoona is the cheapest (cost index 89.5), Bethel Park the richest ($107,090), and York the fastest growing (+0.6% a year). City ranks are among the 20 Pennsylvania cities we cover, not every city in the state.
Standout cities in Pennsylvania
| Best for | City | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| Safest | Bethel Park | 44 violent crimes per 100K |
| Cheapest | Altoona | cost of living index 89.5 |
| Most walkable | Harrisburg | walkability 15.9 of 20 |
| Cleanest air | Erie | median AQI 34 (county) |
| Best schools | State College | 96% graduation rate |
| Richest | Bethel Park | $107,090 |
Among the 20 Pennsylvania cities we track. Safest uses a full year of FBI reports from the city's own police agency; air quality is measured by county, so cities in the same county share a reading.
Regions of Pennsylvania
The Northeast Corridor end: a city with a wage tax and violent crime next to Main Line and Bucks County suburbs with the best districts and highest property bills.
Warehouse country and the New York commuter frontier; growing, cheaper than New Jersey across the river, and filling with households priced out of the metro.
Rust Belt prices with a health-care and tech economy; cheap houses, steep hills, Bethel Park the safest tracked city, and Erie's lake-effect winters up north.
State government, Amish farm country, Penn State and the interstate logistics belt; low costs, York the fastest-growing tracked city, and Harrisburg's crime rate the highest tracked.
Former anthracite towns with the cheapest homes in the Northeast, aging populations, a growing Latino community in Hazleton, and long-haul commuters to New Jersey and New York.
All 20 tracked cities, best to worst
| # | City | Grade | Score | Population | Income | Violent / 100K | Cost index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bethel Park | A+ | 72.4 | 32,881 | $107,090 | 44 | 94.7 |
| 2 | Levittown | B+ | 62.1 | 50,926 | $105,071 | — | 102.6 |
| 3 | State College | B+ | 62.0 | 41,050 | $45,424 | 153 | 96.8 |
| 4 | Easton | B+ | 61.8 | 29,739 | $69,348 | 167 | 100 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh | B+ | 60.7 | 304,759 | $65,742 | 468 | 94.7 |
| 6 | Bethlehem | B+ | 60.7 | 77,956 | $68,879 | 197 | 100 |
| 7 | Drexel Hill | B+ | 59.5 | 30,451 | $88,168 | — | 102.6 |
| 8 | Lancaster | B | 56.1 | 57,719 | $63,690 | 374 | 98.3 |
| 9 | Norristown | C+ | 55.0 | 35,893 | $66,701 | 487 | 102.6 |
| 10 | Altoona | C+ | 54.6 | 43,196 | $51,250 | 285 | 89.5 |
| 11 | Allentown | C+ | 53.9 | 125,976 | $55,494 | 264 | 100 |
| 12 | Scranton | C+ | 53.3 | 76,033 | $50,739 | 327 | 93.6 |
| 13 | Erie | C+ | 52.5 | 93,850 | $46,113 | 315 | 91 |
| 14 | York | C | 50.4 | 44,938 | $48,420 | 443 | 96 |
| 15 | Hazleton | C | 49.0 | 30,111 | $46,177 | 164 | 93.6 |
| 16 | Wilkes-Barre | D | 48.5 | 44,423 | $48,515 | 413 | 93.6 |
| 17 | Philadelphia | D | 47.8 | 1,579,706 | $61,953 | 830 | 102.6 |
| 18 | Harrisburg | D | 47.3 | 50,287 | $48,099 | 634 | 98.7 |
| 19 | Reading | D | 45.8 | 95,242 | $44,091 | 258 | 97.1 |
| 20 | Chester | D | 44.8 | 33,619 | $41,342 | 494 | 102.6 |
Swipe the table sideways for more columns. Rank is among the 20 Pennsylvania cities we track: every city of 50,000 or more, plus the state's other largest places. City scores use city-level Census, FBI, BLS, CDC, EPA and NCES data, and a category with no city data is left out of the score rather than filled with the state's figure.
Best cities in Pennsylvania for…
| # | City | Score | Education | Safety | Affordability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bethel Park | 75.5 | 83.8 | 99.4 | 73.4 |
| 2 | State College | 72.1 | 88.4 | 91.6 | 65.7 |
| 3 | Easton | 69.8 | 76.3 | 91.3 | 73.5 |
| 4 | Bethlehem | 66.1 | 71.3 | 85.4 | 70.0 |
| 5 | Pittsburgh | 65.3 | 71.6 | 60.0 | 76.9 |
Who is Pennsylvania best for?
The same 11 category scores, re-weighted for six kinds of household. Rank is among the 50 states; click through for the best Pennsylvania cities for each.
Weights differ by household: families lean on education, safety and housing; retirees on fiscal health, healthcare and cost. See the weights →
How does Pennsylvania compare with its neighbors?
Pennsylvania ranks #25. Among its bordering states, New Jersey ranks highest (#28) and West Virginia lowest (#44). New Jersey is the most similar on the composite score and West Virginia the most different. Bordering states are listed best to worst; the national line is the mean of the 50 states.
| State | Overall | Score | Median income | Typical home | Cost index | Violent crime | Tax burden | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | #25 | 56.9 | $77,545 | $290,401 | 97.6 | 227 | 8.58% | |
| New Jersey | #28 | 55.0 | $104,294 | $580,353 | 108.8 | 194 | 10.3% | Compare → |
| New York | #29 | 54.9 | $85,820 | $526,714 | 107.9 | 368 | 13.56% | Compare → |
| Delaware | #30 | 53.6 | $87,534 | $406,074 | 99.8 | 347 | 6.52% | Compare → |
| Maryland | #31 | 53.6 | $102,905 | $428,308 | 105 | 358 | 10.04% | Compare → |
| Ohio | #33 | 52.1 | $72,212 | $248,803 | 92.8 | 276 | 9.36% | Compare → |
| West Virginia | #44 | 42.8 | $60,798 | $179,496 | 89.5 | 242 | 8.85% | Compare → |
| United States | — | 57.9 | $80,903 | $368,697 | 100 | 328 | 8.74% |
Overall rank, median income, cost index and tax burden columns are shown on wider screens.
How the score works
Eleven categories, each scored 0–100 and weighted into one composite. Grades follow rank.
The weights
Economy 15% · Safety 12% · Health 12% · Education 12% · Affordability 10% · Fiscal Health 8% · Growth 7% · Transportation 7% · Livability 7% · Outdoor Access 6% · Environment 4%. The composite is the weighted sum, stretched linearly so states spread across most of the 0–100 range.
From raw numbers to scores
Every raw measure is placed on a 0–100 scale between a fixed floor and ceiling, inverted where lower is better (crime, cost, taxes), then combined within its category. The same scale applies to every state.
Letter grades
Grades follow rank, not score: A+ for ranks 1–5, A for 6–10, B+ for 11–18, B for 19–26, C+ for 27–34, C for 35–42, D for 43–48, F for 49–50. A C+ state is not failing; it is in the middle third.
Cities, budgets and neighbors
The 20 Pennsylvania city scores, the household budgets and the neighbor table on this page are computed from the same sources as the state score. City ranks are among the cities we track, not all cities in the state.
Editor's notes
Passages marked as editor's notes are written for this state and add context the numbers cannot: regions, tradeoffs, who the state fits. Every figure inside them is pulled from the data at build time, so the words cannot drift from the numbers.
Always the latest release
Each source is the most recent release its agency has published. The page is rebuilt when a source updates, so the score can move without any change in the state itself.
What the score cannot tell you
Weather and climate, culture and pace, politics beyond the Cook index shown for context, the quality of a specific school, hospital or neighborhood, job prospects in your field, and anything without a public, comparable, 50-state source. Statewide averages also hide the metro-versus-rural split, which is why the editor's notes name places.
Category briefs
Economy: Unemployment rate and median household income. Safety: Violent and property crime rates per 100,000 residents. Health: Health outcomes, behaviors, and access to care. Education: K-12 school quality, test scores, and graduation rates. Full methodology →
Key takeaways
What the Pennsylvania numbers say when read together.
Transportation is Pennsylvania's strongest suit
Pennsylvania is a #25 state overall but #9 of 50 for transportation, 16 places better than its composite rank, with a score of 55.9 against a national average of 49.8. Safety (#15) is next. Transportation carries 7% of the composite.
Fiscal Health is where Pennsylvania falls furthest behind
Pennsylvania ranks #41 of 50 for fiscal health, 16 places below its overall #25, with a score of 45.6 against a national average of 58.1. At 8% of the composite, it is the category holding the overall score down most.
Violent crime rate is 31% below the national average
Pennsylvania's violent crime rate is 227, 31% below the national average of 328, #14 of 50 (1 = safest). The largest gap in the other direction is unemployment rate: 4.3%, 0.3 points above the national average. Source: FBI estimates, latest release.
More households leave than arrive
Pennsylvania ranks #37 of 50 on net household flow per 1,000 residents (-0.9). The households arriving report $9,276 less in average income than those leaving ($76,366 against $85,642), so the state is trading down on income even as the headcount shrinks. The largest source is New York; the largest destination is Florida.
A middle income is squeezed less here than in most states
A family of four earning $75,000 ends the year at a $11,625 shortfall after housing, childcare, utilities, groceries, transport and taxes, against a $11,758 shortfall in the median state (#25 of 50). A single adult on the same income comes out at a $33,202 surplus; a retiree couple at a $37,129 surplus. Infant childcare runs $15,302 a year, 2% below the national average.
Pennsylvania outranks every bordering state
None of Pennsylvania's 6 bordering states ranks above its #25; the closest match on the composite is New Jersey. Median income among them runs from $60,798 in West Virginia to $104,294 in New Jersey; Pennsylvania is at $77,545.
Frequently asked questions about living in Pennsylvania
Is Pennsylvania a good place to live?
Pennsylvania ranks #25 of 50 with a B grade, #7 of 11 in the Northeast. It is top 10 in transportation and bottom 10 in fiscal health. On the six headline measures it beats the national figure on 4 of 6 (home prices, cost of living, violent crime, and tax burden) and trails on income and unemployment. Whether that adds up to a good place to live depends on what you weigh; the household rankings below re-weight the same numbers for families, retirees and remote workers.
Where does Pennsylvania rank among US states?
Pennsylvania ranks #25 of 50 overall with a composite score of 56.9 (grade B), and #7 of 11 states in the Northeast. Its best category rank is #9 (transportation) and its worst #41 (fiscal health). The composite weights eleven categories, with economy, safety, health and education counting most; grades follow rank, so B means rank 19–26.
Is it expensive to live in Pennsylvania?
At #28 of 50 for cost of living (1 = cheapest), Pennsylvania is 2% below the national average: its index is 97.6 against a national baseline of 100. The typical home value is $290,401 (21% below the national average), and buying it takes an income of about $82,894 against a median household income of $77,545. At $75,000, a family of four comes out at a $11,625 shortfall after all costs, #25 of 50 (1 = most left over).
Does Pennsylvania have a state income tax?
Yes. Pennsylvania's top state income tax rate is 6.86% (#37 of 50, 1 = lowest), and the total state and local tax burden is 8.58% of income, 0.2 points below the national average. Property tax is 1.41% of home value and combined sales tax 6.34%.
What is the crime rate in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania reports 227 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, 31% below the national average and #14 of 50 (1 = safest), and 1,324 property crimes per 100,000, 14% below the national average (#17). Its safety score is 78.1 out of 100, #15 of 50. Figures are FBI estimates from the latest release.
Does Pennsylvania have good schools?
Pennsylvania is #15 of 50 for education (score 65.4 out of 100). Its public school students average 276 in eighth-grade math on NAEP (#18) and 259 in eighth-grade reading (#19), and the high school graduation rate is 87%, 1.4 points above the national average (#22). Among tracked cities with at least three schools, State College has the highest graduation rate at 96%.
Why are people leaving Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania lost a net 12,095 households in the latest IRS release: 123,625 moved in and 135,720 moved out, -0.9 per 1,000 residents (#37 of 50). The largest source of arrivals is New York (20,643 households) and the most common destination is Florida (16,395). Arriving households report an average income of $76,366 against $85,642 for those leaving, so movers out earn more than movers in. The IRS files count tax returns and say nothing about motives.
Is Pennsylvania a red or blue state?
Pennsylvania is an even split on the Cook Partisan Voting Index. The political lean is shown for context and is not part of the composite score.
Is Pennsylvania tax-friendly for retirees?
On income, yes; on property and inheritance, less so. The state income tax skips Social Security, pensions and retirement-plan withdrawals, so a couple living on those pays none. Property tax at 1.41% still arrives yearly, rebates help lower-income seniors, and an inheritance tax hits most estates passing to children. Retirees rank #26 here and land in the Poconos, Lancaster County and the Pittsburgh suburbs.
What are the downsides of living in Pennsylvania?
Slow growth, layered taxes and an emptying north. Population grows +0.1% against +0.51% nationally, GDP per capita is 1% above the national average, and fiscal health ranks #41 with a rainy-day fund of 4.5% of spending. Every town and district sends a tax bill, the Turnpike is expensive, and liquor is state-run. The disaster risk index of 13.4 is among the lowest anywhere; the weather will not bankrupt you.
What should I know about Pennsylvania's culture before moving?
Alcohol is the first surprise. Wine and spirits come from state-run Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores, beer from distributors or licensed grocery counters. The second is that Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are different countries: one faces New York and the Shore, the other Ohio and the rivers, with farm country and Penn State between. Township politics are intense, and everyone knows their school district's millage rate.
Is Pennsylvania cheaper than New Jersey?
Considerably on housing; roughly even on income tax once local rates count. The cost index is 97.6 against New Jersey's higher one, the typical home is $290,401 versus about double across the Delaware, and property tax at 1.41% sits well under New Jersey's, the country's highest. Local earned-income taxes and bridge tolls narrow the gap. For a Philadelphia commuter, Bucks County still beats Burlington County.
Where in Pennsylvania should I live?
Pick the metro, then the suburb. Philadelphia salaries point to the Main Line or Bucks County. Health and tech workers pick Pittsburgh's East End or the South Hills, where Bethel Park is the safest tracked city. State employees pick Harrisburg's suburbs or York, the fastest-growing tracked city. New York commuters land in the Lehigh Valley or Poconos. Remote and thrifty: Altoona, the cheapest tracked city.
All the numbers
Every metric behind Pennsylvania's 11 category scores, with the national figure beside each. Pick a category.