Best Places17048, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 17048, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
17048 ranks 17,963rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on fast internet by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 17048
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
17048's strengths and weaknesses
Where 17048 ranks high
- Internet speedBetter than 93% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 88% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 82% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 81% of zip codes
Where 17048 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 66 pleasant days a year, better than only 18% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 17048
A household needs to earn about $37,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 17048 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $67,578, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 17048's effective rate of 0.94%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 17048
17048's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 17048.
Who works in 17048, and how
Work in 17048 centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 79%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in 17048
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 17048.
What the weather is like in 17048, month by month
17048 sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 31° | 22° |
| April | 66° | 53° | 41° |
| July | 88° | 76° | 64° |
| October | 69° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 17048
The nearest airport, Harrisburg International, is about 27 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 92 miles away.
The best schools in and around 17048
Schools across 17048 average an A−, better than 88% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Upper Dauphin Area El SchA+ · 80% proficient
- Williams Valley El SchA− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- Upper Dauphin Area MsB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- Upper Dauphin Area HsA− · 60% proficient
- Williams Valley JshsB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 17048 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
17048 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 17048 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 17048
Is 17048 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 17048 ranks 17,963rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on fast internet, good schools, and big-city access, and lowest on education levels and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 17048 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $139,336. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $67,578 median income, cost of living beats 38% of zip codes.
Is 17048 safe?
17048 is safer than 19% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $510 per resident a year.
Compare 17048 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 17048. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 17048 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
17048 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 17048: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 17048: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 17048: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 17048: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
17048 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.