Best Places19606, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 19606, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
19606 ranks 6,521st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 19606
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.
19606's strengths and weaknesses
Where 19606 ranks high
- BikingBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 91% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 87% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 85% of zip codes
Where 19606 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 59 pleasant days a year, better than only 7% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 28% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 19606
A household needs to earn about $77,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 19606 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $93,126, 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 19606's effective rate of 1.96%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 19606
19606'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 19606.
Who works in 19606, and how
Work in 19606 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 19606
19606 has more parkland per resident than 73% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 19606 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 19606, month by month
19606 sees roughly 59 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 33° | 24° |
| April | 67° | 54° | 42° |
| July | 90° | 78° | 67° |
| October | 71° | 58° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 19606
The nearest airport, Lancaster, is about 26 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 45 miles away.
The best schools in and around 19606
Schools across 19606 average a B−, better than 63% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Oley Valley El SchA+ · 80% proficient
- Owatin Creek El SchA− · 60% proficient
- Lorane El SchA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Oley Valley MsA− · 55% proficient
- Reiffton SchB+ · 52% proficient
- Exeter Twp JhsB · 47% proficient
Top high schools
- Oley Valley ShsA+ · 95% proficient
- Exeter Twp ShsC+ · 40% proficient
- Reading ShsC+ · 36% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 19606 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
19606 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 19606 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 19606 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 76% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 13% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 19606
Is 19606 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 19606 ranks 6,521st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on biking, big-city access, and walkability, and lowest on property taxes and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 19606 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $255,833. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $93,126 median income, cost of living beats 76% of zip codes.
Is 19606 safe?
Yes, 19606 is safer than 58% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $256 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 19606?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 24. That works out to about 59 pleasant days a year, more than 7% of zip codes.
Is 19606 good for families?
Schools beat 63% of zip codes, crime safety beats 58%, and childcare runs $948 a month.
Compare 19606 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 19606. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 19606 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.
19606 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 19606: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 19606: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 19606: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 19606: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
19606 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.