You’ll find the most affordable places to live in Pennsylvania where Pierogis meet Hoagies – midway between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
Relative to the skyrocketing real estate prices in many East Coast states, home prices in Pennsylvania are a welcome relief. The appeal of affordable housing combined with access to Pirates games and Philly Cheese-Steaks makes Pennsylvania great.
To find the cheapest places to live in Pennsylvania, we used Saturday Night Science and Census data to compare housing costs, the cost of living, and incomes across 182 places in Pennsylvania over 5,000 people. Pennsylvania offers a wide range of affordable options, from small towns to major metropolises.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Table | FAQs | Summary
The 10 most affordable places to live in Pennsylvania
What is the cheapest place to live in Pennsylvania? The cheapest place to live in Pennsylvania is New Castle.
Pennsylvania remains cheap and affordable even with its rich history, rich community spirit, and rich chocolate â especially from the US chocolate capital, Hershey.
Check out some more reading about Pennsylvania and the cheapest places in the country:
The 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Pennsylvania For 2026
/10
Population: 21,579
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 78
Median Income: $42,219
Median Home Price: $144,555
Median Rent: $741
You can make your castle in New Castle, the cheapest place in Pennsylvania. Northwest of Pittsburgh, the town has affordable metrics for utilities, services, and healthcare.
According to the Census, the average income is $42,219 and the unemployment rate is 12.46%.
More on New Castle: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 18,087
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 78
Median Income: $37,888
Median Home Price: $86,107
Median Rent: $644
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, 43 miles west-southwest of Altoona and 67 miles east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census and estimated to be 20,402 in 2013. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County.
More on Johnstown: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Johnstown is a great place to live, everyone is friendly.
We have great restaurants.
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Population: 12,936
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 80
Median Income: $45,670
Median Home Price: $72,982
Median Rent: $827
Sharon, the third most cost-effective city in Pennsylvania, features home prices averaging $72,982, significantly below the state average. The city’s home price to income ratio sits at 1.60, easing the path to homeownership. Renters benefit too, with a median rent of $827.
Located along the Shenango River near Youngstown, OH, Sharon’s living expenses come in with an index of 80. Sharon is close to Moraine State Park for affordable family fun in the Keystone State.
More on Sharon: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 9,742
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 81
Median Income: $35,454
Median Home Price: $155,711
Median Rent: $774
Uniontown, yet another Pittsburgh suburb in Fayette County, made the list of the most affordable cities in Pennsylvania in fourth place. The average home price is the 36th lowest in the state at $155,711, according to Zillow.
The Uniontown Downtown Historic District has cheap thing to do on the weekend since it seems the park in the area are a bit lacking.
More on Uniontown: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 6,853
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 81
Median Income: $39,690
Median Home Price: $67,101
Median Rent: $824
Shamokin is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, surrounded by Coal Township at the western edge of the Anthracite Coal Region. It was named after a Saponi village, Schahamokink. At the 2010 census the population was 7,374 residents. The city of Shamokin is bordered by Coal Township, Pennsylvania.
More on Shamokin: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 5,523
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 81
Median Income: $52,661
Median Home Price: $154,867
Median Rent: $626
Is it really super crazy green in Greenville? We’re not 100 percent sure, but one thing we’re sure about is that Greenville is our sixth most affordable city in Pennsylvania for 2026.
This little Hershey Kiss is 48th when it comes to home price to income ratio. We’re not surprised it’s so affordable. And we definitely think it’s because they have such a strong economy as a result of step ladders. Yes, step ladders. Greenville is home to the largest manufacturers of step ladders. Now if step ladder manufacturing isn’t your shtick, but living in the oh so affordable Greenville is, we heard “‘The Jewel of the Shenango River” is alway looking for river guides.
More on Greenville: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 5,149
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 81
Median Income: $44,180
Median Home Price: $59,332
Median Rent: $739
As should now be apparent, the most affordable area of Pennsylvania is around Pittsburgh, with another suburb making an appearance on the list – Duquesne. The city has affordable living because of a $59,332 average home price that is attractively below the state and national averages. The city’s cost-effectiveness solidifies with an overall affordability index of 81.
More on Duquesne: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 5,007
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 82
Median Income: $45,997
Median Home Price: $97,661
Median Rent: $682
There’s more to Pennsylvania than Philadelphia and Pittsburgh; there’s our eighth most affordable city in Pennsylvania for 2026: Turtle Creek. Kudos to Turtle Creek, they have been one of the Keystone State’s most affordable cities three years in a row.
The median income for Turtle Creek is close to $45,997. This allowed Turtle Creek to grab the 11th most affordable city in PA in terms of home price to income ratio title, too. Do we think Turtle Creek has managed to keep their city so affordable because of their pop vocal group Vogue’s kickbacks? Maybe. Either way, seems like they’re keeping their townies employed and their city affordable.
More on Turtle Creek: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 9,617
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 83
Median Income: $51,028
Median Home Price: $177,767
Median Rent: $738
Sunbury is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and west branches. It dates to the early 18th century and is the county seat of Northumberland County.
More on Sunbury: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Population: 7,532
Overall Cost Of Living Index: 83
Median Income: $67,138
Median Home Price: $151,015
Median Rent: $865
More on Ellwood City: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Cheapest places to live in Pennsylvania FAQs
The county in Pennsylvania with the lowest cost of living is Juniata County. The average living wage in Juniata County is $80,011 according to MIT data. Juniata County has the lowest cost of living because it has relatively less expensive childcare and housing costs compared to Pennsylvania as a whole. Childcare costs $11,398 a year in Juniata County for two children compared to the Pennsylvania average of $17,440. Housing costs, defined as a blend of the average rent and average mortgage payment, are $8,688 per year in Juniata County compared to $12,350 on average in Pennsylvania.
The cost of living in Pennsylvania is 1.5% higher than the US average. According to MIT, the required living wage for a family of four with two working parents in Pennsylvania is $91,069 vs the national average for a family of four with two working parents of $89,744. The median income of a Pennsylvania household is $63,627.
The cheapest housing market in Pennsylvania is Johnstown. The average home value in Johnstown is $37,000, the lowest in the state. The average home value in Pennsylvania is $187,500, almost 5.1 times higher than Johnstown.
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The county in Pennsylvania with the lowest cost of living is Juniata County. The average living wage in Juniata County is $80,011 according to MIT data. Juniata County has the lowest cost of living because it has relatively less expensive childcare and housing costs compared to Pennsylvania as a whole. Childcare costs $11,398 a year in Juniata County for two children compared to the Pennsylvania average of $17,440. Housing costs, defined as a blend of the average rent and average mortgage payment, are $8,688 per year in Juniata County compared to $12,350 on average in Pennsylvania.
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Methodology: How we determined the most affordable places to live in the Keystone State for 2026
Determining affordability for places in Pennsylvania boils down to how much it costs to live here.
You need to understand your costs relative to what people in the rest of the state are paying.
With that logic in mind, we derived several cost of living statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2020-2024 for Pennsylvania using Saturday Night Science. We indexed the cost of living statistics across the following categories:
- Housing
- Transportation
- Services
- Groceries
- Healthcare
- Utilities
These are then weighted together to produce an overall cost of living index where 100 is the United States average. Anything below 100 is relatively affordable. Anything over 100 is relatively expensive.
We applied the biggest weight to housing as it typically accounts for 25% or more of your budget. Additionally, housing costs are the highest variant cost across a state. We then compare these cost of living metrics for each place in Pennsylvania to figure out which is the least expensive.
The “Cost of Living Index” allows you to rank all of the 182 places in Pennsylvania that have more than 5,000 people from least expensive to most expensive. Any ties went to the larger city.
The place in Pennsylvania with the lowest cost of living according to the data is New Castle.
We updated this article for 2026. This report reflects our eleventh time ranking the cheapest places to live in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania Affordabilility Summary
This is an accurate list of the most affordable places to live in Pennsylvania for 2026, if you’re looking at the cost of living numbers in Pennsylvania.
The cheapest cities in Pennsylvania are New Castle, Johnstown, Sharon, Uniontown, Shamokin, Greenville, Duquesne, Turtle Creek, Sunbury, and Ellwood City.
Here’s a look at the most expensive cities in Pennsylvania according to the data:
- Fox Chapel
- Franklin Park
- Swarthmore
For more Pennsylvania reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In Pennsylvania
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Pennsylvania
- Worst Places To Live In Pennsylvania
Cheapest Places To Live In Pennsylvania
| Rank | City | Population | Cost Of Living Index | Median Income | Home Prices | Rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Castle | 21,579 | 78 | $42,219 | $144,555 | $741 |
| 2 | Johnstown | 18,087 | 78 | $37,888 | $86,107 | $644 |
| 3 | Sharon | 12,936 | 80 | $45,670 | $72,982 | $827 |
| 4 | Uniontown | 9,742 | 81 | $35,454 | $155,711 | $774 |
| 5 | Shamokin | 6,853 | 81 | $39,690 | $67,101 | $824 |
| 6 | Greenville | 5,523 | 81 | $52,661 | $154,867 | $626 |
| 7 | Duquesne | 5,149 | 81 | $44,180 | $59,332 | $739 |
| 8 | Turtle Creek | 5,007 | 82 | $45,997 | $97,661 | $682 |
| 9 | Sunbury | 9,617 | 83 | $51,028 | $177,767 | $738 |
| 10 | Ellwood City | 7,532 | 83 | $67,138 | $151,015 | $865 |
| 11 | Clairton | 6,044 | 83 | $36,538 | $157,508 | $1,009 |
| 12 | Franklin | 5,984 | 83 | $47,117 | $126,691 | $731 |
| 13 | Mount Carmel | 5,677 | 83 | $53,021 | $59,925 | $742 |
| 14 | Titusville | 5,189 | 83 | $38,194 | $113,340 | $662 |
| 15 | Chester | 33,619 | 84 | $41,342 | $92,319 | $1,091 |
| 16 | Oil City | 9,468 | 84 | $51,316 | $87,761 | $821 |
| 17 | Warren | 9,240 | 84 | $53,815 | $139,190 | $771 |
| 18 | Beaver Falls | 8,850 | 84 | $49,924 | $195,209 | $727 |
| 19 | Punxsutawney | 5,665 | 84 | $42,183 | $123,130 | $775 |
| 20 | York | 44,938 | 85 | $48,420 | $275,648 | $1,014 |
| 21 | McKeesport | 17,380 | 85 | $34,219 | $96,205 | $848 |
| 22 | Aliquippa | 9,079 | 85 | $50,188 | $199,054 | $821 |
| 23 | Tamaqua | 6,924 | 85 | $46,176 | $153,115 | $996 |
| 24 | Ambridge | 6,890 | 85 | $51,537 | $135,994 | $969 |
| 25 | Monessen | 6,780 | 85 | $52,889 | $80,828 | $733 |
| 26 | Corry | 6,116 | 85 | $48,618 | $150,126 | $802 |
| 27 | Clearfield | 5,873 | 85 | $54,646 | $134,054 | $691 |
| 28 | McKees Rocks | 5,786 | 85 | $41,131 | $193,201 | $1,081 |
| 29 | Schuylkill Haven | 5,253 | 85 | $54,167 | $231,980 | $904 |
| 30 | Vandergrift | 5,011 | 85 | $50,901 | $104,149 | $794 |
| 31 | Erie | 93,850 | 86 | $46,113 | $198,492 | $870 |
| 32 | Wilkes-Barre | 44,423 | 86 | $48,515 | $172,140 | $946 |
| 33 | Pottsville | 13,364 | 86 | $54,332 | $151,259 | $822 |
| 34 | Pittston | 7,626 | 86 | $49,941 | $201,703 | $871 |
| 35 | Plymouth | 5,770 | 86 | $39,167 | $143,725 | $930 |
| 36 | Reading | 95,242 | 87 | $44,091 | $260,653 | $1,067 |
| 37 | Butler | 13,212 | 87 | $44,247 | $235,360 | $818 |
| 38 | New Kensington | 12,011 | 87 | $49,063 | $169,953 | $751 |
| 39 | Nanticoke | 10,653 | 87 | $57,462 | $164,941 | $792 |
| 40 | DuBois | 7,402 | 87 | $62,697 | $169,881 | $899 |
| 41 | Connellsville | 6,849 | 87 | $45,721 | $136,535 | $683 |
| 42 | New Brighton | 5,567 | 87 | $52,939 | $151,446 | $749 |
| 43 | West Mifflin | 19,190 | 88 | $76,563 | $160,811 | $780 |
| 44 | Washington | 13,368 | 88 | $52,975 | $233,299 | $910 |
| 45 | Brentwood | 9,866 | 88 | $68,904 | $169,688 | $860 |
| 46 | Bradford | 7,683 | 88 | $56,161 | $95,097 | $800 |
| 47 | Coraopolis | 5,417 | 88 | $63,828 | $302,085 | $902 |
| 48 | Tyrone | 5,377 | 88 | $57,226 | $155,310 | $788 |
| 49 | Scranton | 76,033 | 89 | $50,739 | $181,950 | $1,048 |
| 50 | Harrisburg | 50,287 | 89 | $48,099 | $263,369 | $1,062 |
| 51 | Altoona | 43,196 | 89 | $51,250 | $134,583 | $819 |
| 52 | Williamsport | 27,612 | 89 | $48,851 | $202,720 | $855 |
| 53 | Lebanon | 26,536 | 89 | $48,456 | $285,427 | $992 |
| 54 | Wilkinsburg | 14,027 | 89 | $46,416 | $172,752 | $1,025 |
| 55 | St. Marys | 12,529 | 89 | $67,167 | $165,531 | $762 |
| 56 | Munhall | 10,548 | 89 | $52,517 | $147,110 | $780 |
| 57 | Jeannette | 8,657 | 89 | $49,188 | $174,393 | $863 |
| 58 | Grove City | 7,830 | 89 | $57,169 | $219,876 | $906 |
| 59 | Steelton | 6,296 | 89 | $58,194 | $149,755 | $1,289 |
| 60 | Somerset | 5,944 | 89 | $47,102 | $217,890 | $678 |
| 61 | Meadville | 12,577 | 90 | $43,308 | $154,202 | $855 |
| 62 | Berwick | 10,317 | 90 | $49,800 | $203,642 | $797 |
| 63 | Carbondale | 8,789 | 90 | $47,716 | $146,867 | $660 |
| 64 | Monaca | 5,519 | 90 | $73,538 | $209,282 | $768 |
| 65 | West Hazleton | 5,178 | 90 | $34,118 | $179,125 | $1,186 |
| 66 | Duryea | 5,084 | 90 | $62,462 | $195,347 | $1,130 |
| 67 | Swoyersville | 5,048 | 90 | $71,555 | $206,254 | $744 |
| 68 | Hazleton | 30,111 | 91 | $46,177 | $212,761 | $1,089 |
| 69 | Hermitage | 16,041 | 91 | $70,052 | $213,564 | $896 |
| 70 | Indiana | 14,212 | 91 | $40,857 | $192,678 | $849 |
| 71 | White Oak | 7,468 | 91 | $59,452 | $192,181 | $1,000 |
| 72 | Milton | 6,534 | 91 | $54,577 | $220,577 | $922 |
| 73 | Red Lion | 6,516 | 91 | $72,901 | $291,902 | $884 |
| 74 | West York | 5,092 | 91 | $80,995 | $137,313 | $971 |
| 75 | Lancaster | 57,719 | 92 | $63,690 | $243,852 | $1,240 |
| 76 | Darby | 10,687 | 92 | $39,863 | $130,980 | $1,308 |
| 77 | Canonsburg | 9,675 | 92 | $79,227 | $358,323 | $1,025 |
| 78 | Lock Haven | 8,447 | 92 | $46,102 | $197,124 | $792 |
| 79 | Swissvale | 8,418 | 92 | $60,341 | $163,309 | $1,136 |
| 80 | Huntingdon | 6,897 | 92 | $67,125 | $190,101 | $838 |
| 81 | Palmerton | 5,622 | 92 | $68,143 | $254,961 | $931 |
| 82 | Easton | 29,739 | 93 | $69,348 | $371,500 | $1,325 |
| 83 | Kingston | 13,397 | 93 | $55,347 | $220,512 | $1,038 |
| 84 | Columbia | 10,278 | 93 | $54,437 | $290,829 | $1,075 |
| 85 | West View | 6,533 | 93 | $84,063 | $252,295 | $1,080 |
| 86 | Bloomsburg | 13,024 | 94 | $51,536 | $257,066 | $980 |
| 87 | Yeadon | 12,181 | 94 | $49,759 | $228,206 | $1,213 |
| 88 | Castle Shannon | 8,209 | 94 | $64,071 | $211,413 | $1,126 |
| 89 | Taylor | 6,265 | 94 | $71,599 | $192,994 | $1,085 |
| 90 | Dickson City | 6,023 | 94 | $59,963 | $213,635 | $997 |
| 91 | Exeter | 5,541 | 94 | $57,639 | $225,839 | $981 |
| 92 | Olyphant | 5,381 | 94 | $66,423 | $228,297 | $963 |
| 93 | Lehighton | 5,268 | 94 | $64,651 | $277,946 | $1,019 |
| 94 | Greensburg | 14,741 | 95 | $64,914 | $238,468 | $839 |
| 95 | Coatesville | 13,353 | 95 | $59,256 | $384,164 | $1,471 |
| 96 | Old Forge | 8,573 | 95 | $71,812 | $207,906 | $859 |
| 97 | Carnegie | 7,978 | 95 | $67,656 | $224,034 | $890 |
| 98 | Folcroft | 6,772 | 95 | $61,306 | $214,933 | $1,329 |
| 99 | Blakely | 6,662 | 95 | $55,855 | $220,300 | $1,063 |
| 100 | Forest Hills | 6,286 | 95 | $89,688 | $222,966 | $1,068 |