Best PlacesNorthumberland County, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Northumberland County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages are not the whole story, and the strongest areas score well above them. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Northumberland County ranks 1,072nd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on walkability by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Northumberland County
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.
The best areas in Northumberland County
The parts of Northumberland County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Riverside
Fewer homes sit empty, it is quieter, and more households have young kids.
Sunbury
Crime runs lower.
Milton, Watsontown & Northumberland
More residents vote, though streets are more car-dependent.
Mount Carmel & Elysburg
Homes cost less, though schools score lower.
Shamokin, Coal Township & Kulpmont
Incomes run lower and fewer adults hold degrees.
Scores across Northumberland County run from about the 6th to the 90th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
Northumberland County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Northumberland County ranks high
- WalkabilityBetter than 97% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than 93% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than 92% of counties
- Cell coverageBetter than 88% of counties
- School gradeB+, better than 85% of counties
Where Northumberland County ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 66 pleasant days a year, better than only 13% of counties
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 19% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 20% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than only 20% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Northumberland County
A household needs to earn about $45,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Northumberland County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $66,019, 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 Northumberland County's effective rate of 1.18%, 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 Northumberland County
Northumberland County runs older 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 Northumberland County.
Who works in Northumberland County, and how
Work in Northumberland County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in Northumberland County
Northumberland County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties. That concentrates in some parts of Northumberland County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Northumberland County growing, and who is moving in?
Northumberland County has lost about 4% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Philadelphia, PA.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Northumberland County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Northumberland County, month by month
Northumberland County sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 30° | 21° |
| April | 65° | 51° | 38° |
| July | 88° | 75° | 63° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Northumberland County
The nearest airport, Harrisburg International, is about 47 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 103 miles away.
The best schools in and around Northumberland County
Schools across Northumberland County average a B+, better than 85% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Hartman El CtrA+ · 80% proficient
- Upper Dauphin Area El SchA+ · 80% proficient
- Priestley SchA+ · 80% proficient
Top middle schools
- Donald H Eichhorn MsA · 66% proficient
- Selinsgrove Area MsA · 65% proficient
- Southern Columbia MsA · 60% proficient
Top high schools
- Danville Area ShsA+ · 91% proficient
- Lewisburg HsA+ · 85% proficient
- Line Mountain HsA · 73% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Northumberland County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Northumberland County 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 Northumberland County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Northumberland County suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 10% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in Northumberland County
Is Northumberland County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Northumberland County ranks 1,072nd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on walkability, big-city access, and low disaster risk, and lowest on the weather and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Northumberland County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $165,376. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $66,019 median income, cost of living beats 39% of counties.
Is Northumberland County safe?
Yes, Northumberland County is safer than 70% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $259 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Northumberland County?
July highs average about 88 degrees, and January highs near 40 with lows near 21. That works out to about 66 pleasant days a year, more than 13% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Northumberland County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Riverside, Sunbury, and Milton, Watsontown & Northumberland. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare Northumberland County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Northumberland County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Northumberland County 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.
Northumberland County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Northumberland County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Northumberland County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Northumberland County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Northumberland County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Northumberland County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.