The 10 Best Philadelphia Suburbs To Live In For 2022


We analyzed over 91 places around Philadelphia to identify the most in demand places to live.

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Editor’s Note: Data has been updated for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the best Philadelphia suburbs.

If HomeSnacks was asked to hand out awards to the city with the best suburbs for 2022, Philadelphia would be at the top of our list. But, since we haven't been asked to do that just yet...a list of the top ten best suburbs in the City of Brotherly Love for 2022 will have to suffice. And, folks, you can find this list below.

And just like Phillly's Rocky Balboa, we have been training for this list for quite some time. This is actually our ninth time ranking Philadelphia's best suburbs, so believe us when we say that these are truly P-towns best of the best. Fortunately, however, we did not have to run a bunch of steps to get the most fit list; we just had to consult the latest FBI and Census for things like population counts, income levels, and unemployment rates. And because we always give 110% to our work, we created our own SnackAbility index and ran all 91 Philadelphia suburbs through our formula for things like education levels, amenities, commute times, and diversity.

We discovered some fun Philly facts along the way. For one, if you want to live in one Philadelphia's best suburbs, you're going to have to spend a decement amount if you want to buy a home in one of these gems. Secondly, the economic and cultural anchor of the Delaware Valley is one of the state's most diverse cities. So if you want a suburb with the best Asian fusion and Philly cheesesteak 'whit wiz,' choose Collegeville, and if you want the best suburb for your family, definitely give Swarthmore a look.

Want to know what suburb made it all eight rounds for the win? Crank some Eye of the Tiger, find a sunny spot on U Penn's campus, and read on.

Here are the 10 best suburbs to live around Philadelphia for 2022:

  1. Narberth
  2. Conshohocken
  3. Haddonfield
  4. Pennington
  5. North Wales
  6. Wenonah
  7. Audubon
  8. Medford Lakes
  9. Media
  10. Malvern

And just like the Philadelphia Phillies, we're pretty sure we knocked it out of Citizens Bank Park with our list of the best suburbs in Philadelphia for 2022. But, you're not going to know unless you take a look below.

So, what is Philadelphia's best suburb for 2022? According to the most recent data, that would be Narberth.

We suggest that you do yourself a favor and head to the bottom of the page to see how the rest of Philly's burbs fared; and if you have some time on your hands, take a look at Philadelphia's worst suburbs.

Note: This result may differ from our state wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a larger selection of suburbs.

Feel free to check out some more reading about Pennsylvania:

The 10 Best Philadelphia Suburbs To Live For 2022

Narberth is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Philadelphia area. We'll tell you the good about "Awesome Narberth."

Everyone here is rich; families average $107,266 a year, which is the 6th highest in the Philadelphia region. And only 1.58% are out of work. Homes average more than $536,200 each.

Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 4,304
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $107,266
Unemployment Rate: 1.6%
Poverty Rate: 2.3%
More on Narberth: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Narberth, PA

Source: Public domain

Conshohocken is the second best 'burb we looked at near Philadelphia for 2022.

It ranks 12th for incomes in the area and only 2.14% of residents lack insurance, good for 8th best.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 8,039
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 2)
Median Income: $103,203
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.5%
More on Conshohocken: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Conshohocken, PA

Source: Public domain

Here in Haddonfield, it's really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you'll see in the Philadelphia metro area.

The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.

But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Haddonfield.

Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 11,342
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 1)
Median Income: $151,579
Unemployment Rate: 2.4%
Poverty Rate: 2.2%
More on Haddonfield: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Haddonfield, NJ

Source: Public domain

Pennington ranks as the 4th best suburb of Philadelphia for 2022.

You won't find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Pennington and the schools are some of the best around.

Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 2,553
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Median Income: $135,000
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 1.4%
More on Pennington: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Pennington, NJ

Source: Public domain

Coming in as the fifth best is North Wales.

North Wales gets kudos for having the 22nd most expensive homes in the Philadelphia area, where houses sell for an average of $270,200. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 3,271
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Median Income: $96,679
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on North Wales: Real Estate | Data | Photos

North Wales, PA

Wenonah is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here's why.

Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 4.49% which is 28th best in the area.

According to online reports, Wenonah is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Philadelphia area, meaning you need to get in soon.

Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 2,255
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Median Income: $125,139
Unemployment Rate: 4.5%
Poverty Rate: 1.3%
More on Wenonah: Real Estate | Data

The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Audubon.

Audubon schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.

And, it's only 8.8 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 8,656
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 5)
Median Income: $90,335
Unemployment Rate: 3.4%
Poverty Rate: 2.3%
More on Audubon: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Audubon, NJ

Source: Public domain

Medford Lakes is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.

A solid 3.03% of people lack insurance, good for 21st in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 3,961
Rank Last Year: 18 (Up 10)
Median Income: $126,154
Unemployment Rate: 6.1%
Poverty Rate: 1.2%
More on Medford Lakes: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Medford Lakes, NJ

Is 'Everything Better In Media?'

Almost.

It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it's really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 5,658
Rank Last Year: 15 (Up 6)
Median Income: $76,658
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%
Poverty Rate: 6.4%
More on Media: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Media, PA

Source: Public domain

And rounding out the top ten for 2022 is Malvern.

This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It's far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 3,445
Rank Last Year: 20 (Up 10)
Median Income: $105,556
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%
Poverty Rate: 3.8%
More on Malvern: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Malvern, PA

Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Philadelphia for 2022

Figuring out the best suburbs around Philadelphia was pretty simple; we just needed to list several things that people like, and then find out which cities have the most of those things.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:

  • Low unemployment rate
  • High Median household incomes
  • Population density (lots of things to do)
  • High home values
  • A lot of college educated people
  • Low poverty
  • High rate of insured families

Then we used the newest American Community Survey data for 2016-2020 to research each suburb.

FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Philadelphia.

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 91 suburbs to evaluate around Philadelphia.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 91 in each category, where 1 was the "best.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index the "Best Suburb near Philadelphia." We're lookin' at you, Narberth. You can download the data here.

Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best of the best. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.

Summary: Welcome to the Best Philadelphia 'Burbs of 2022

We said it once and we'll say it again--life in the big city isn't for everyone. At least not all the time.

So if you're hankering for some of the amenities of a larger city like Philadelphia, but don't want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might just be for you.

For more Pennsylvania reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Philadelphia Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income
1 Narberth, PA 4,304 $107,266
2 Conshohocken, PA 8,039 $103,203
3 Haddonfield, PA 11,342 $151,579
4 Pennington, PA 2,553 $135,000
5 North Wales, PA 3,271 $96,679
6 Wenonah, PA 2,255 $125,139
7 Audubon, PA 8,656 $90,335
8 Medford Lakes, PA 3,961 $126,154
9 Media, PA 5,658 $76,658
10 Malvern, PA 3,445 $105,556
11 Aldan, PA 4,146 $80,769
12 Rockledge, PA 2,536 $77,132
13 Swarthmore, PA 6,339 $118,182
14 Riverton, PA 2,691 $100,278
15 New Britain, PA 2,957 $106,850
16 Haddon Heights, PA 7,520 $97,955
17 Trappe, PA 3,664 $104,306
18 Lambertville, PA 3,809 $105,744
19 Collegeville, PA 5,105 $92,174
20 Woodbury Heights, PA 2,977 $98,426
21 New Hope, PA 2,518 $107,000
22 Berlin, PA 7,543 $96,065
23 Ridley Park, PA 7,042 $83,358
24 Hatfield, PA 3,337 $60,896
25 Bordentown, PA 3,808 $82,863
26 Ambler, PA 6,494 $73,953
27 Yardley, PA 2,496 $87,337
28 Chalfont, PA 4,212 $96,824
29 Chester Heights, PA 2,654 $86,850
30 Parkside, PA 2,043 $80,917
31 Brookhaven, PA 8,045 $76,638
32 Oaklyn, PA 3,961 $70,789
33 Phoenixville, PA 16,961 $85,550
34 Perkasie, PA 8,646 $79,293
35 Hatboro, PA 7,458 $79,350
36 Collingswood, PA 13,882 $68,663
37 Norwood, PA 5,957 $77,949
38 Merchantville, PA 3,702 $81,688
39 Barrington, PA 6,678 $78,708
40 Morton, PA 2,671 $77,500
41 Royersford, PA 4,760 $57,800
42 Dublin, PA 2,110 $78,971
43 Mount Ephraim, PA 4,591 $80,882
44 Lansdowne, PA 10,637 $63,224
45 West Chester, PA 20,033 $62,092
46 Stratford, PA 6,968 $78,309
47 Glenolden, PA 7,094 $63,036
48 Lansdale, PA 16,846 $70,931
49 Penndel, PA 2,928 $54,759
50 Clayton, PA 8,688 $92,824
51 Runnemede, PA 8,307 $71,495
52 Gibbsboro, PA 2,238 $82,865
53 Souderton, PA 7,019 $67,245
54 Pitman, PA 8,785 $80,716
55 Sellersville, PA 4,279 $69,976
56 Swedesboro, PA 2,583 $70,673
57 Palmyra, PA 7,162 $73,212
58 Telford, PA 4,747 $68,688
59 Somerdale, PA 5,479 $73,498
60 Bridgeport, PA 4,576 $54,527
61 Bristol, PA 9,577 $60,028
62 Glassboro, PA 20,069 $72,103
63 East Lansdowne, PA 2,661 $51,250
64 Upland, PA 3,344 $51,897
65 Magnolia, PA 4,280 $66,117
66 Lawnside, PA 2,883 $70,227
67 Yeadon, PA 11,495 $52,269
68 National Park, PA 2,964 $65,379
69 Pine Hill, PA 10,418 $61,064
70 Wilmington, PA 70,655 $45,139
71 Clifton Heights, PA 6,700 $54,238
72 Beverly, PA 2,425 $78,611
73 Westville, PA 4,171 $51,959
74 Clementon, PA 4,939 $46,563
75 Paulsboro, PA 5,881 $45,897
76 Sharon Hill, PA 5,680 $59,656
77 Woodbury, PA 9,839 $60,741
78 Woodlynne, PA 2,911 $57,250
79 Bellmawr, PA 11,375 $60,041
80 Colwyn, PA 2,541 $49,597
81 Lindenwold, PA 17,288 $46,077
82 Collingdale, PA 8,776 $48,170
83 Burlington, PA 9,845 $65,688
84 Folcroft, PA 6,629 $56,169
85 Eddystone, PA 2,407 $42,841
86 Darby, PA 10,711 $40,423
87 Trenton, PA 83,387 $37,002
88 Chester, PA 33,855 $32,867
89 Camden, PA 73,742 $28,623
90 Penns Grove, PA 4,793 $32,361
91 Marcus Hook, PA 2,334 $37,149

How Is Your Town In ?

About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends. .

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.