Best PlacesWest Side, Scranton, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Side, Scranton, 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.
West Side, Scranton ranks 4,171st of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in West Side, Scranton
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.
West Side, Scranton's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Side, Scranton ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- Short commute17.9 minutes each way, better than 90% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 84% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than 83% of neighborhoods
Where West Side, Scranton ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Low vacancyBetter than only 13% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Side, Scranton
A household needs to earn about $44,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Side, Scranton home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $49,152, 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 West Side, Scranton's effective rate of 1.86%, 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 West Side, Scranton
West Side, Scranton runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for West Side, Scranton.
Who works in West Side, Scranton, and how
Work in West Side, Scranton centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in West Side, Scranton
West Side, Scranton has more restaurants and bars per resident than 68% of neighborhoods and more parkland per resident than 86% of neighborhoods. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of West Side, Scranton and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Side, Scranton, month by month
West Side, Scranton sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 38, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38° | 30° | 21° |
| April | 65° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 63° |
| October | 67° | 55° | 45° |
Flying in and out of West Side, Scranton
The nearest airport, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Newark Liberty International, about 93 miles away.
The best schools in and around West Side, Scranton
Schools across West Side, Scranton average a B−, better than 76% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Frances Willard #32A+ · 75% proficient
- Isaac Tripp El SchA+ · 75% proficient
- John G Whittier #2B− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- South Scranton Intrmd SchD+ · 25% proficient
- West Scranton Intrmd SchD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Scranton HsA · 70% proficient
- West Scranton HsA · 70% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Side, Scranton school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Side, Scranton 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 West Side, Scranton against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in West Side, Scranton
Is West Side, Scranton a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Side, Scranton ranks 4,171st of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on low disaster risk, fast internet, and short commutes, and lowest on property taxes and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Side, Scranton expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $145,727. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $49,152 median income, cost of living beats 22% of neighborhoods.
Is West Side, Scranton safe?
West Side, Scranton is safer than 50% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $416 per resident a year.
Compare West Side, Scranton with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Side, Scranton. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Side, Scranton 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.
West Side, Scranton detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Side, Scranton: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Side, Scranton: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Side, Scranton: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Side, Scranton: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Side, Scranton 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.