Best PlacesWashington County, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Washington County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages hide a wide spread here, so the area matters as much as the address. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Washington County ranks 473rd of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $87,909, everyday costs sit below the national average, and good schools ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are state infrastructure, noise, and childcare costs.
The best neighborhoods in Washington 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 Washington County
The parts of Washington 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.
Canonsburg & Venetia
Incomes run higher, more households have young kids, and local pay stretches further.
Eighty Four
Commutes are shorter, though prices have run up more.
Claysville
Tree cover is thicker, though more homes sit empty.
Burgettstown & Avella
It is quieter, though fewer adults hold degrees.
Washington
Homes cost less, though fewer residents vote.
Finleyville
Scores close to Washington, except that streets are more car-dependent here.
Charleroi, California & Brownsville
Crime runs higher and schools score lower.
Monongahela & Donora
Health outcomes score lower and health care is harder to reach.
Washington County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 9% of the country and others in the top 1%. Pick the area first, then the home.
Washington County's strengths and weaknesses
Washington County ranks where it does because the parts of life that are hardest to change mostly work here. Low disaster risk is the standout, in the top 2% of counties. Health care access and good schools follow.
The drawbacks are real but narrow. State infrastructure, noise, and childcare costs hold the score down. The measures below break that down, and the map shows how much of it holds street by street.
Where Washington County ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 98% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than 95% of counties
- School gradeA−, better than 92% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than 87% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than 86% of counties
Where Washington County ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 14% of counties
- Cheap childcare$1,005 a month, better than only 16% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than only 22% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 23% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Washington County
A household needs to earn about $69,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Washington County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $87,909, 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 Washington County's effective rate of 1.14%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Washington County
Washington 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 Washington County.
Who works in Washington County, and how
Work in Washington 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 81%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in Washington County
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Washington County.
Is Washington County growing, and who is moving in?
Washington County has grown about 1% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the Pittsburgh, PA metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Washington County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Washington County, month by month
Washington County sees roughly 75 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 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° | 39° |
| July | 85° | 73° | 62° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Washington County
Pittsburgh International sits about 20 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 4.8 million passengers in 2025, with 104 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Washington County
Schools across Washington County average an A−, better than 92% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Wilson El SchA+ · 98% proficient
- South Fayette Intermediate SchA+ · 95% proficient
- Trinity South El SchA+ · 95% proficient
Top middle schools
- Cecil Intrmd SchA · 61% proficient
- Canonsburg MsA− · 57% proficient
- Trinity MsA− · 56% proficient
Top high schools
- Peters Twp HsA+ · 100% proficient
- West Allegheny ShsA+ · 82% proficient
- Bethlehem-center ShsA+ · 80% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Washington County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Washington 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 Washington County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Washington County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties and 15% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Washington County
Is Washington County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Washington County ranks 473rd of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on low disaster risk, health care access, and good schools, and lowest on state infrastructure and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Washington County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $251,911. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $87,909 median income, cost of living beats 86% of counties.
Is Washington County safe?
Yes, Washington County is safer than 62% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $273 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Washington County?
July highs average about 85 degrees, and January highs near 40 with lows near 21. That works out to about 75 pleasant days a year, more than 30% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Washington County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Canonsburg & Venetia, Eighty Four, and Claysville. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Washington County good for families?
Schools beat 92% of counties, crime safety beats 62%, and childcare runs $1,005 a month.
Is Washington County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties, though advertised internet speeds beat only 54% of counties. About 15% of workers already work from home.
Compare Washington County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Washington County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Washington 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.
Washington County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Washington County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Washington County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Washington County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Washington County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Washington 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.