Best PlacesDowntown, Allentown, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Downtown, Allentown, 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.
Downtown, Allentown ranks 4,400th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cell coverage by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Downtown, Allentown
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.
Downtown, Allentown's strengths and weaknesses
Where Downtown, Allentown ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$865 a month, better than 80% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 77% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than 75% of neighborhoods
Where Downtown, Allentown ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 58 pleasant days a year, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Household income$47,568 median, better than only 13% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Downtown, Allentown
A household needs to earn about $43,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Downtown, Allentown home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $47,568, 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 Downtown, Allentown's effective rate of 0.90%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Downtown, Allentown
Downtown, Allentown runs younger than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Downtown, Allentown.
Who works in Downtown, Allentown, and how
Work in Downtown, Allentown centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 73%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 16%
Life in Downtown, Allentown
Downtown, Allentown has more restaurants and bars per resident than 86% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Downtown, Allentown and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Downtown, Allentown, month by month
Downtown, Allentown sees roughly 58 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 41, 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 | 41° | 32° | 22° |
| April | 66° | 53° | 40° |
| July | 89° | 77° | 65° |
| October | 69° | 57° | 45° |
Flying in and out of Downtown, Allentown
The nearest airport, Lehigh Valley International, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 52 miles away.
The best schools in and around Downtown, Allentown
Schools across Downtown, Allentown average a D, better than 16% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Union Terrace El SchB− · 41% proficient
- Luis A. Ramos El SchD− · 16% proficient
- Brigadier General Anna Mae Hays El SchD− · 14% proficient
Top middle schools
- Francis D Raub MsD− · 14% proficient
- South Mountain MsD− · 13% proficient
Top high schools
- William Allen HsC · 31% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Downtown, Allentown school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Downtown, Allentown 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 Downtown, Allentown against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Downtown, Allentown
Is Downtown, Allentown a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Downtown, Allentown ranks 4,400th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on cell coverage, walkability, and affordable childcare, and lowest on an overheated housing market and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Downtown, Allentown expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $161,109. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $47,568 median income, cost of living beats 16% of neighborhoods.
Is Downtown, Allentown safe?
Downtown, Allentown is safer than 38% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $465 per resident a year.
Compare Downtown, Allentown with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Downtown, Allentown. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Downtown, Allentown 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.
Downtown, Allentown detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Downtown, Allentown: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Downtown, Allentown: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Downtown, Allentown: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Downtown, Allentown: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Downtown, Allentown 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.