Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 33/100
F
Median home value$243,100
Philadelphia $351,900
Median rent$1,397/mo
Philadelphia $1,480/mo
Cost-burdened households39%
Philadelphia 32%
Philadelphia
Philadelphia County1,579,706 residentsPhiladelphia City SD
49
D+
Suburbgrade score
35th of 50 Philadelphia suburbs. Strong on amenities and cost of living, held back by employment & income.
49
Philadelphia median 58
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Philadelphia yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 49 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Philadelphia is like to live in, by category
Bars show Philadelphia against Philadelphia. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 38/100
D−
Within-state proficiency21st pct
Philadelphia median 48th pct
Student–teacher ratio13.2
Philadelphia median 13.0
Graduation rate66%
Philadelphia median 89%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 77/100
B
Housing cost index84
Philadelphia 100
Eff. tax rate0.85%
Philadelphia 1.37%
Local sales tax6.34%
Philadelphia median 6.34%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 43/100
D
Mean commute31.7 min
Philadelphia 28.7 min
Under 30 minutes48%
Philadelphia 56%
Transit stops / sq mi5.9
Philadelphia median 0.4 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 84/100
A−
Restaurants & cafés95
Philadelphia median 53 · within 2 miles
Groceries14
Philadelphia median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks170
Philadelphia median 41 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 30/100
F
Median household income$61,953
Philadelphia $91,289
Unemployment8.1%
Philadelphia 5.9%
Professional occupations45%
Philadelphia 49%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Philadelphia yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Philadelphia on employment & income
Philadelphia's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbEmploymentOverall
Haddonfield9 mi from PhiladelphiaA− 71 B− Montgomeryville18 mi from PhiladelphiaB 71 B− King of Prussia14 mi from PhiladelphiaB− 72 B− Horsham12 mi from PhiladelphiaB− 68 B− Greentree12 mi from PhiladelphiaB− 64 C+ Ardmore9 mi from PhiladelphiaB− 74 B Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Philadelphia
Is Philadelphia, PA a good place to live?
Philadelphia scores 49 out of 100, 35th of 50 Philadelphia suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Philadelphia expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $243,100, 31% below the Philadelphia median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.85%. $1,397/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Philadelphia?
Schools grade D−. The districts serving Philadelphia sit at the 21st pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 66% graduation rate and a 13.2 student–teacher ratio. Philadelphia is served by Philadelphia City SD. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Philadelphia?
The mean commute is 31.7 min, with 48% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 18% working from home. Transit density is 5.9 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Philadelphia?
Within two miles there are 14 groceries, 95 restaurants and cafés and 170 parks, which grades A− on amenities.
Are the homes in Philadelphia old or new?
The median home in Philadelphia was built in 1949 — older than the Philadelphia median of 1966. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 64% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.