Borough · Franklin County, Pennsylvania

Greencastle, Pennsylvania

Greencastle is a borough in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, part of the Chambersburg, PA metro area. It has 4,222 residents. Greencastle, Pennsylvania has a quality-of-life score of 76 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,793 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Pennsylvania it ranks #271 of 997 cities and towns. It ranks best on rent as share of income (low), uninsured residents (under 65) (low) and new homes permitted (high). It ranks worst on comfortable days (low), new business applications (low) and drought exposure (high).

76High

Quality-of-life score: #3,793 of 15,651 cities and towns
Pennsylvania: #271 of 997 in PA
Population: 4,222 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 2,659.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 4230896

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.

Safety75#3,934/15,637
Economy43#8,957/15,631
Housing93#1,109/14,977
Health65#5,468/15,609
Healthcare74#4,065/15,650
Environment69#4,750/15,453
Education78#3,519/15,649
Infrastructure39#9,592/15,650
Community73#4,238/15,651
Leisure & amenities32#10,585/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Rent as share of income · low23.0%
96/100Pennsylvania 29.2%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low1.1%
96/100Pennsylvania 7.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010High uncertainty
New homes permitted · high17.8 /1k
95/100Pennsylvania 2.0 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Mammography screening · high56.0%
94/100Pennsylvania 51.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFranklin County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationFranklin County value
Rent-burdened households · low29.8%
91/100Pennsylvania 48.2%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Weaknesses

Comfortable days · low23.3%
10/100Pennsylvania 23.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationFranklin County value
New business applications · low9.1 /1k
16/100Pennsylvania 12.4 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauFranklin County value
Drought exposure · high74%
19/100Pennsylvania 26%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAFranklin County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.485
19/100Pennsylvania 0.474United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Child care cost burden · high35.6%
21/100Pennsylvania 34.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFranklin County value
Broadband subscriptions · low87.3%
23/100Pennsylvania 89.7%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002

Trends

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

PopulationRising
4,013 (2015-2019) → 4,222 (2020-2024)
+5.2%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
0.2 /1k (2021) → 17.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+7,359%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateWorsening
1.5% (2015-2019) → 13.1% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Income inequality (Gini index)Worsening
0.372 (2015-2019) → 0.485 (2020-2024)
+30%5 yearsCensus table B19083US 0.482 → 0.483
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.7× (2015-2019) → 3.4× (2020-2024)
+27%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
29.2% (2015-2019) → 33.5% (2020-2024)
+4.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

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, Greencastle, Pennsylvania improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 7 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.

Improved1

Household income+21%$63,993 → $77,419

Declined2

Inequality+0.1130.372 → 0.485
Price / income+0.7×2.7× → 3.4×

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Greencastle, Pennsylvania between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.1 min2015-2019	18.4 min2020-2024	−3.7 min	Within the margin of error	84%
Bachelor's degree or higher	29.2%2015-2019	33.5%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Broadband subscriptions	83.8%2015-2019	87.3%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Effective property tax rate	1.43%2015-2019	1.25%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	53%
High school diploma or higher	95.7%2015-2019	95.0%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	3.4×2020-2024	+0.7×	Declined	35%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3722015-2019	0.4852020-2024	+0.113	Declined	3%
Median household income	$63,9932015-2019	$77,4192020-2024	+21%	Improved	35%
Rent as share of income	20.9%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	+2.1 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Rent-burdened households	27.4%2015-2019	29.8%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	47%

“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 Greencastle, Pennsylvania five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Greencastle, 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, Greencastle, Pennsylvania itself moved −11.1 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

4,222 residents (±18)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 20–29 men (−5.2 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

4,222 residents (±18)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

White91%3,860
Black2.1%†88
Hispanic or Latino1.3%†53

Education

2,968 residents (±190)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

No high school diploma5.0%†147
High school or GED33%991
Some college22%654

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

1,760 households (±161)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $25k9.7%†171
$25k–50k20%†348
$50k–75k17%†301
$75k–100k16%†280
$100k–150k14%†241
$150k–200k11%†186
$200k or more13%†233

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $200k or more (+9.0 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,760 households (±161)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Own62%1,092
Rent38%668

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

635 households (±132)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $75027%†171
$750–1,00032%†203
$1,000–1,50036%†

Home values

1,092 homes (±123)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $150k6.2%†68
$150k–250k38%†415
$250k–400k39%†423

Age of homes

1,959 homes (±182)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

2010 or later2.7%†53
2000–200910%†201
1980–199926%†

Size of homes

1,959 homes (±182)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Studio4.9%†96
1 bedroom8.1%†159
2 bedrooms27%523

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,070 workers (±234)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Drive alone77%1,597
Carpool5.0%†104
Public transit0.1%†2
Walk4.6%†95
Bike0.0%0
Work from home11%†227
Other2.2%†45

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,843 workers (±251)

Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under 15 min30%553
15–29 min53%981
30–44 min13%†236

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Chambersburg, 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 Franklin County, the county holding most of Greencastle's residents.

Franklin County has 3,111 employer establishments, 197 for every 10,000 residents (0.79× the US rate of 248; 0.83× Pennsylvania's), with 52,942 paid employees at an average annual pay of $48,543. The Census Bureau also counts 10,451 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,111; 10,451 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 197; US 248 · Pennsylvania 236
Paid employees: 52,942
Average annual pay: $48,543; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	224	14.2	0.77×Fewer than typical	3,901	$17,718	49
Ambulatory health care services	209	13.2	0.63×Fewer than typical	3,246	$80,107	302
Specialty trade contractors	186	11.8	0.76×Fewer than typical	1,666	$59,980	872
Religious organizations	172	10.9	1.96×More than typical	941	$21,118	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	112	7.1	1.41×More than typical	514	$42,045	231
Full-service restaurants	107	6.8	0.88×About typical	2,056	$17,864	16
Construction of buildings	103	6.5	0.86×About typical	535	$61,256	391
Limited-service restaurants	97	6.1	0.76×Fewer than typical	1,556	$17,501	22
Services to buildings and dwellings	97	6.1	0.91×About typical	785	$40,034	678
Personal care services	88	5.6	1.17×About typical	338	$27,065	316
Lessors of real estate	87	5.5	0.45×Fewer than typical	286	$40,269	1,008
Truck transportation	87	5.5	1.09×About typical	1,816	$68,565	255

Rank places for an industry Open Franklin County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 158,181 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 $2,087 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Greencastle, Pennsylvania: $0.49 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $2,087; −93% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.49; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Department of the Army$1,79986%
Federal Emergency Management Agency$28814%

Top recipients

C V DIESEL SALES & SERVICE, INC.$1,52773%
WASTE REMOVAL USA, LLC$28814%
GULLITOS WAY$27213%
WALKER FEDERAL SERVICES, LLC.$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

53.9KFY2017
56.4KFY2018
6.2KFY2019
8KFY2020
1.2KFY2021
9.4KFY2022
21.1KFY2023
17KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance · 8113$1,52773%
Waste collection · 5621$28814%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$27213%

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 Greencastle, Pennsylvania, so they do not add up across cities.

Greencastle, Pennsylvania's figures are part of those of Franklin County, PA ($305.1M 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: Greencastle is mostly in Franklin County.

See federal money in Franklin 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.

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

House

John JoyceR-PA-13 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.1%

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.

Franklin County79100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Chambersburg, PA66

Other cities and towns in Franklin 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/4230896

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends