Borough · Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania

Cressona, Pennsylvania

Cressona is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, part of the Pottsville, PA metro area. It has 1,420 residents. Cressona, Pennsylvania has a quality-of-life score of 44 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #8,715 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Pennsylvania it ranks #817 of 997 cities and towns. It ranks best on income inequality (Gini index) (low), rent-burdened households (low) and rent as share of income (low). It ranks worst on homicide rate (high), new business applications (low) and new homes permitted (low).

44Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #8,715 of 15,651 cities and towns
Pennsylvania: #817 of 997 in PA
Population: 1,420 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,423.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 4217152

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety31#10,841/15,637
Economy46#8,440/15,631
Housing86#2,141/14,977
Health36#9,945/15,609
Healthcare58#6,636/15,650
Environment51#7,552/15,453
Education50#7,865/15,649
Infrastructure6#14,717/15,650
Community67#5,126/15,651
Leisure & amenities37#9,780/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Cressona, Pennsylvania ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Schuylkill County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.331
97/100Pennsylvania 0.474United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Rent-burdened households · low28.4%
94/100Pennsylvania 48.2%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Rent as share of income · low22.9%
92/100Pennsylvania 29.2%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Hospital quality rating · high4.3
91/100Pennsylvania 3.5United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSchuylkill County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSchuylkill County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSchuylkill County value

Weaknesses

Homicide rate · high18.8 /100k
1/100Pennsylvania 4.1 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSchuylkill County value
New business applications · low8.7 /1k
12/100Pennsylvania 12.4 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauSchuylkill County value
New homes permitted · low0.0 /1k
13/100Pennsylvania 2.0 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Broadband subscriptions · low84.7%
16/100Pennsylvania 89.7%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Mental health providers · low108 /100k
16/100Pennsylvania 308 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSchuylkill County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,638 /100k
16/100Pennsylvania 3,115 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSchuylkill County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,572 (2015-2019) → 1,420 (2020-2024)
−9.7%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
47.1% (2015-2019) → 28.4% (2020-2024)
−19 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Child poverty rateImproving
13.5% (2015-2019) → 4.5% (2020-2024)
−9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
13.7% (2015-2019) → 22.7% (2020-2024)
+8.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Poverty rateImproving
11.2% (2015-2019) → 5.1% (2020-2024)
−6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$57,717 (2015-2019) → $73,967 (2020-2024)
+28%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Cressona, Pennsylvania improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved4

Rent burden−19 points47.1% → 28.4%
Bachelor's++8.9 points13.7% → 22.7%
Poverty−6 points11.2% → 5.1%
Household income+28%$57,717 → $73,967

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Cressona, Pennsylvania between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.1 min2015-2019	23.5 min2020-2024	+4.4 min	Within the margin of error	12%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.7%2015-2019	22.7%2020-2024	+8.9 points	Improved	87%
Broadband subscriptions	82.4%2015-2019	84.7%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Effective property tax rate	1.73%2015-2019	1.43%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	75%
High school diploma or higher	90.4%2015-2019	93.8%2020-2024	+3.4 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Home price to income ratio	2.1×2015-2019	2.1×2020-2024	+0.0×	Within the margin of error	78%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3652015-2019	0.3312020-2024	−0.035	Within the margin of error	77%
Median household income	$57,7172015-2019	$73,9672020-2024	+28%	Improved	51%
Poverty rate	11.2%2015-2019	5.1%2020-2024	−6 points	Improved	84%
Rent as share of income	28.1%2015-2019	22.9%2020-2024	−5.2 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Rent-burdened households	47.1%2015-2019	28.4%2020-2024	−19 points	Improved	93%
Unemployment rate	4.1%2015-2019	4.6%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.4%2015-2019	4.6%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	45%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Cressona, Pennsylvania five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Cressona, Pennsylvania in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Cressona, Pennsylvania itself moved +6.5 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,420 residents (±251)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

587 households (±101)

Cressona, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $25k8.3%†49
$25k–50k25%†149
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

587 households (±101)

Cressona, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Own76%444
Rent24%†143

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

697 workers (±153)

Cressona, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Drive alone72%500
Carpool15%†104
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Pottsville, PA

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Schuylkill County, the county holding most of Cressona's residents.

Schuylkill County has 2,705 employer establishments, 188 for every 10,000 residents (0.76× the US rate of 248; 0.80× Pennsylvania's), with 41,596 paid employees at an average annual pay of $50,547. The Census Bureau also counts 7,831 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,705; 7,831 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 188; US 248 · Pennsylvania 236
Paid employees: 41,596
Average annual pay: $50,547; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Schuylkill County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	228	15.8	0.76×Fewer than typical	2,387	$61,165	250
Restaurants and other eating places	176	12.2	0.67×Fewer than typical	2,215	$16,706	73
Specialty trade contractors	149	10.4	0.67×Fewer than typical	1,006	$63,690	721
Religious organizations	135	9.4	1.69×More than typical	533	$16,747	—
Full-service restaurants	98	6.8	0.89×About typical	1,294	$16,762	21
Automotive repair and maintenance	96	6.7	1.32×More than typical	321	$43,411	225
Offices of physicians	95	6.6	1.02×About typical	791	$91,321	37
Truck transportation	86	6	1.18×About typical	1,921	$73,865	221
Construction of buildings	68	4.7	0.62×Fewer than typical	572	$61,941	283
Building equipment contractors	62	4.3	0.72×Fewer than typical	402	$63,955	152
Offices of other health practitioners	61	4.2	0.70×Fewer than typical	297	$44,949	119
Services to buildings and dwellings	60	4.2	0.62×Fewer than typical	258	$40,136	413

Rank places for an industry Open Schuylkill County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 143,892 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Cressona is mostly in Schuylkill County.

See federal money in Schuylkill County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Cressona, Pennsylvania is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Daniel MeuserR-PA-9 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 5.2%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Schuylkill County57100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Pottsville, PA41

Other cities and towns in Schuylkill County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/4217152

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends