It’s not all peace, love, and harmony in the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia has its fair share of sketch neighborhoods, too.
Just how bad are these neighborhoods? Well, you’re going to have to take a look below at RoadSnacks’ list of the worst neighborhoods in Philadelphia for 2026 to see where the crime is high, the average income is low, and the locals are in constant survival mode. We call this the perfect ‘thunder’-storm.
But in order to determine Philadelphia’s worst neighborhoods, we had to give each neighborhood an actual concrete score: We call this a neighborhood’s overall ‘SnackAbility’. To get this score, we looked at the latest census data on income levels, unemployment rates, crime, and home prices for 56 Philadelphia neighborhoods with over 2,000 residents. Incidentally, this is our eleventh time ranking Philly’s worst neighborhoods, so trust us when we say that these are the worst of the worst.
Folks, the kind of places that we are talking about are the kind of places that you’ll want to invest in a security system or a guard dog. And in all honesty, if you find that one of Philadelphia’s worst neighborhoods is all that you can afford, you might want to think about renting: Save yourself the headache.
And because the glass is always half full here a RoadSnacks, we think that if you do get stuck in one of Philly’s worst neighborhoods, it might not be all bad. Heck, you could find yourself front and center to a real life Live PD episode in Frankford and if you choose Elmwood the pure entertainment of people watching is not only free, it’s five star!
So, want to know where Philadelphia’s worst neighborhoods are located? Keep reading.
$24,935 median income
$29,030 median income
$25,196 median income
$17,992 median income
$28,438 median income
$36,392 median income
Elmwood (or Elmwood Park, as it’s also known) sits in the southwestern part of the city, relatively close to the airport. It’s bound by the Schuylkill River to the east and the huge Mt. Moriah Cemetery to the north.
You’ll have trouble finding a job in the area. Elmwood suffers an unemployment rate of 10.6%. At the same time, people with jobs often struggle to pay the bills. The median income sits at just $36,392. Weak schools and concerns about crime also weigh on the neighborhood’s 15,688 residents.
Still, you can find benefits to life in the area. Elmwood supports a hopping nightlife and the neighborhood abounds in parks and other activities.
$28,706 median income
Located in West Philly, Haddington-Carroll Park suffers from serious economic problems. A lack of high-paying jobs leaves this area as one of the least livable parts of the city.
Just look at the numbers: an unemployment rate of 8.9% and a median income of $28,706. A bad reputation has some benefits, however. A lack of competition in the housing market makes it easier to afford homes. The median home value sits at $68,396.
There are plenty of bright spots in Haddington-Carroll Park. You can find a host of amenities around the neighborhood and, for a spot of nature, check out the namesake Carroll Park.
$33,299 median income
$29,642 median income
$42,035 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Pennsylvania’s statewide median.
Pennsylvania statewide median: $282,736
Pennsylvania statewide median: $77,971
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the most dangerous Philadelphia neighborhoods in 2026
To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what places have the least amount of those things. We plugged the following criteria into Saturday Night Science to get the worst neighborhoods in Philadelphia:
- High crime (Estimated)
- High unemployment (Less jobs)
- Low median income (Less pay)
- Low population density (No things to do)
- Low home values (No one’s willing to pay to live here)
Then, we ranked each neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for each of these criteria from worst to best.
Next, we averaged the individual rankings for each criterion into a “Worst Score.”
The neighborhood with the lowest “Worst Score” ranks as the most dangerous neighborhood of Philadelphia.
The article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2026. Skip to the end to see the list of all 56 neighborhoods ranked from worst to best.
The full plate
Most dangerous neighborhoods to live in Philadelphia for 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Population | Home Value | Median Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tioga-Nicetown | 17,382 | $58,569 | $24,935 |
| 2 | Strawberry Mansion | 13,933 | $68,238 | $29,030 |
| 3 | Alleghany West | 18,676 | $48,477 | $25,196 |
| 4 | Fairhill | 4,405 | $52,433 | $17,992 |
| 5 | Hunting Park | 17,642 | $65,918 | $28,438 |
| 6 | Elmwood | 15,688 | $103,192 | $36,392 |
| 7 | Haddington-Carroll Park | 35,068 | $68,396 | $28,706 |
| 8 | Frankford | 23,989 | $93,217 | $33,299 |
| 9 | Germantown | 66,915 | $99,031 | $29,642 |
| 10 | Kensington | 24,869 | $142,231 | $42,035 |
| 11 | Logan-Fern Rock | 23,813 | $80,772 | $30,568 |
| 12 | Harrowgate | 16,098 | $87,075 | $29,043 |
| 13 | Hartranft | 20,205 | $90,838 | $23,203 |
| 14 | Belmont | 3,931 | $109,500 | $33,473 |
| 14 | Juniata Park-Feltonville | 34,014 | $78,023 | $31,888 |
| 16 | Poplar-Ludlow-Yorktowne | 18,907 | $184,789 | $35,486 |
| 17 | Eastwick | 6,841 | $152,940 | $62,198 |
| 18 | Mayfield | 32,474 | $139,232 | $48,968 |
| 19 | Wissanoning | 27,190 | $108,379 | $44,320 |
| 20 | Richmond | 26,912 | $135,789 | $53,760 |
| 21 | Grays Ferry | 15,927 | $165,333 | $58,692 |
| 22 | Summerdale | 6,756 | $118,500 | $50,710 |
| 23 | Morris Park | 26,860 | $118,371 | $42,528 |
| 24 | Cobbs Creek | 33,242 | $106,654 | $36,830 |
| 25 | North Central | 14,299 | $253,378 | $33,376 |
| 26 | Holmesburry-Torresdale | 25,247 | $130,835 | $46,772 |
| 27 | Marconi Plaza-Packer Park | 5,804 | $105,150 | $69,608 |
| 28 | Pennsport-Whitman-Queen | 31,306 | $218,266 | $54,536 |
| 29 | Brewerytown | 9,470 | $196,938 | $53,106 |
| 29 | Oak Lane | 42,412 | $135,242 | $42,352 |
| 31 | Olney | 41,744 | $101,396 | $38,306 |
| 32 | Wynnefield | 15,237 | $168,340 | $51,329 |
| 33 | Cedar Brook | 26,401 | $157,534 | $46,862 |
| 34 | Torresdale | 6,385 | $169,583 | $63,800 |
| 35 | Mount Airy | 32,467 | $233,451 | $58,968 |
| 36 | Manayunk | 4,007 | $253,750 | $101,206 |
| 37 | Byberry | 16,442 | $219,346 | $63,343 |
| 38 | Riverfront | 2,451 | $382,120 | $116,172 |
| 39 | Oxford Circle | 54,737 | $144,852 | $48,280 |
| 40 | Academy Gardens | 4,094 | $193,067 | $71,325 |
| 41 | Point Breeze | 16,276 | $233,615 | $55,178 |
| 42 | Rhawnhurst | 28,304 | $197,226 | $56,166 |
| 43 | South Philadelphia | 24,829 | $171,795 | $45,300 |
| 44 | Girard Estates | 11,869 | $240,820 | $74,177 |
| 45 | Roxborough | 14,698 | $249,267 | $89,950 |
| 46 | Somerton | 26,084 | $235,033 | $67,342 |
| 46 | East Falls | 9,937 | $272,075 | $107,507 |
| 48 | Bustleton | 34,562 | $231,650 | $61,570 |
| 49 | Schuylkill Southwest | 13,322 | $305,539 | $71,943 |
| 50 | Fox Chase | 20,117 | $227,400 | $68,297 |
| 51 | Fishtown | 19,203 | $321,841 | $88,516 |
| 52 | City Center West | 32,463 | $446,456 | $74,773 |
| 53 | Fairmount-Spring Garden | 23,809 | $320,109 | $72,884 |
| 54 | Wharton-Hawthorne-Bella Vista | 29,357 | $268,021 | $56,818 |
| 55 | Chestnut Hill | 10,783 | $485,075 | $105,999 |
| 56 | City Center East | 26,784 | $481,058 | $76,360 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 56 Philadelphia neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The worst neighborhoods around Philadelphia
Well, there you have it — the worst of the neighborhoods in Philadelphia with Tioga-Nicetown landing at the bottom of the pack.
The worst neighborhoods in Philadelphia are Tioga-Nicetown, Strawberry Mansion, Alleghany West, Fairhill, Hunting Park, Elmwood, Haddington-Carroll Park, Frankford, Germantown, and Kensington.
As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Philadelphia aren’t all bad. City Center East takes the cake as the best place to live in Philadelphia.
We ranked the neighborhoods from worst to best in the chart below. Not sold on Pennsylvania? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Worst Neighborhoods In Philadelphia FAQs
What is the most dangerous neighborhood in Philadelphia?
Tioga-Nicetown ranks as the worst neighborhood in Philadelphia for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Strawberry Mansion and Alleghany West are next on the list.
What are the worst neighborhoods in Philadelphia?
The worst-ranked neighborhoods in Philadelphia are Tioga-Nicetown, Strawberry Mansion, Alleghany West, Fairhill, Hunting Park, Elmwood, Haddington-Carroll Park, Frankford, Germantown, and Kensington. We scored all 56 neighborhoods in the city.
Why does Tioga-Nicetown rank as the worst?
Tioga-Nicetown posts the roughest combined numbers in Philadelphia: a median household income of $24,935 and a median home value of $58,569, with crime, unemployment, and density folded into the score.
Are these neighborhoods dangerous everywhere?
No. The scores are neighborhood-wide averages, and conditions change block by block and hour by hour. Plenty of people live in these neighborhoods without incident; the numbers just say the odds run tougher.
How do you rank the worst neighborhoods?
Each neighborhood is scored on crime, unemployment, income, density, and home values, using Census tract and FBI data. The worst combined score tops the list.
