Borough · Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania

Elizabethtown is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, part of the Lancaster, PA metro area. It has 11,925 residents. Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania has a quality-of-life score of 77 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,593 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Pennsylvania it ranks #259 of 997 cities and towns. It ranks best on flu vaccinations (high), drug overdose deaths (low) and mental health care shortage (low). It ranks worst on fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (high), child care cost burden (high) and restaurants and bars (low).

77High

Quality-of-life score: #3,593 of 15,651 cities and towns
Pennsylvania: #259 of 997 in PA
Population: 11,925 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 4,496.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 4223016

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety93#1,094/15,637
Economy49#7,939/15,631
Housing59#6,067/14,977
Health74#4,104/15,609
Healthcare83#2,610/15,650
Environment11#13,676/15,453
Education80#3,114/15,649
Infrastructure77#3,634/15,650
Community76#3,759/15,651
Leisure & amenities48#8,079/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Lancaster 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

Flu vaccinations · high56.0%
96/100Pennsylvania 52.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLancaster County value
Drug overdose deaths · low5.5 /100k
96/100Pennsylvania 19.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataLancaster County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationLancaster County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationLancaster County value
Hospital quality rating · high4.3
90/100Pennsylvania 3.5United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLancaster County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low6 mi
89/100Pennsylvania 21 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLancaster County value

Weaknesses

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.4 µg/m³
5/100Pennsylvania 8.3 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyLancaster County value
Child care cost burden · high40.3%
8/100Pennsylvania 34.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLancaster County value
Restaurants and bars · low6.0 /10k
19/100Pennsylvania 8.4 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLancaster County value
Effective property tax rate · high1.49%
22/100Pennsylvania 1.25%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Public libraries · low0.3 /10k
24/100Pennsylvania 0.5 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesLancaster County value
New business applications · low10.3 /1k
27/100Pennsylvania 12.4 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauLancaster County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
1.6 /1k (2021) → 0.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−90%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
84.1% (2015-2019) → 92.5% (2020-2024)
+8.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
9.0% (2015-2019) → 13.7% (2020-2024)
+4.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$62,219 (2015-2019) → $76,105 (2020-2024)
+22%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
27.1% (2015-2019) → 31.4% (2020-2024)
+4.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
High school diploma or higherImproving
90.2% (2015-2019) → 92.6% (2020-2024)
+2.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

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, Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 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.

Improved2

Broadband+8.3 points84.1% → 92.5%
Household income+22%$62,219 → $76,105

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.8 min2015-2019	22.3 min2020-2024	+0.4 min	Within the margin of error	42%
Bachelor's degree or higher	27.1%2015-2019	31.4%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Broadband subscriptions	84.1%2015-2019	92.5%2020-2024	+8.3 points	Improved	51%
Child poverty rate	9.0%2015-2019	13.7%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Effective property tax rate	1.66%2015-2019	1.49%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	53%
High school diploma or higher	90.2%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	3.1×2020-2024	+0.2×	Within the margin of error	65%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4012015-2019	0.4282020-2024	+0.027	Within the margin of error	29%
Median household income	$62,2192015-2019	$76,1052020-2024	+22%	Improved	38%
Poverty rate	9.2%2015-2019	7.6%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Rent as share of income	27.2%2015-2019	24.9%2020-2024	−2.3 points	Within the margin of error	71%
Rent-burdened households	43.1%2015-2019	41.8%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Unemployment rate	3.7%2015-2019	3.4%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.7%2015-2019	3.7%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	59%

“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 Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Elizabethtown, 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, Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania itself moved +0.6 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

11,925 residents (±21)

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

4,590 households (±231)

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $25k9.5%†434
$25k–50k18%847
$50k–75k21%†972

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,590 households (±231)

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Own58%2,673
Rent42%1,917

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

6,336 workers (±485)

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Drive alone73%4,602
Carpool5.6%†353
Public transit0.4%†

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 Lancaster, 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 Lancaster County, the county holding most of Elizabethtown's residents.

Lancaster County has 13,776 employer establishments, 246 for every 10,000 residents (0.99× the US rate of 248; 1.04× Pennsylvania's), with 249,379 paid employees at an average annual pay of $55,462. The Census Bureau also counts 50,449 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 13,776; 50,449 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 246; US 248 · Pennsylvania 236
Paid employees: 249,379
Average annual pay: $55,462; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	1,236	22.1	1.43×More than typical	12,431	$69,843	5,198
Ambulatory health care services	922	16.5	0.79×Fewer than typical	14,328	$71,491	1,607
Restaurants and other eating places	808	14.4	0.79×Fewer than typical	15,495	$21,291	248
Construction of buildings	638	11.4	1.51×More than typical	5,037	$71,729	1,355
Religious organizations	587	10.5	1.89×More than typical	4,637	$25,970	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	443	7.9	1.57×More than typical	2,486	$48,657	635
Services to buildings and dwellings	425	7.6	1.13×About typical	2,854	$41,357	2,777
Lessors of real estate	407	7.3	0.59×Fewer than typical	2,124	$52,784	4,929
Truck transportation	388	6.9	1.37×More than typical	4,061	$63,674	1,321
Building equipment contractors	383	6.8	1.14×About typical	5,153	$71,380	923
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	366	6.5	2.07×More than typical	3,114	$70,952	842
Limited-service restaurants	366	6.5	0.81×About typical	5,832	$18,700	119

Rank places for an industry Open Lancaster County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 560,144 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

In FY2026, an estimated $262 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania: $0.02 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $262
Per resident: $0.02; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 100%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Defense Logistics Agency$262100%

Top recipients

CUMMINS-WAGNER COMPANY, INC.$262100%

Spending by fiscal year

29.9KFY2017
69.5KFY2018
47.7KFY2019
17.9KFY2021
4.3KFY2022
12.6KFY2023
0FY2024
261.9FY2026

Top industries (NAICS)

Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$262100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, so they do not add up across cities.

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania's figures are part of those of Lancaster County, PA ($197.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Lancaster 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.

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

House

Lloyd SmuckerR-PA-11 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.8%

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.

Lancaster County79100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Lancaster, PA71

Other cities and towns in Lancaster 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/4223016

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends