Borough · Northampton County, Pennsylvania

Wilson, Pennsylvania

Wilson is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, part of the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metro area. It has 8,183 residents. Wilson, Pennsylvania has a quality-of-life score of 70 out of 100 (high), ranking #4,765 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Pennsylvania it ranks #356 of 997 cities and towns. It ranks best on flu vaccinations (high), hospital quality rating (high) and mammography screening (high). It ranks worst on child care cost burden (high), new homes permitted (low) and drought exposure (high).

70High

Quality-of-life score: #4,765 of 15,651 cities and towns
Pennsylvania: #356 of 997 in PA
Population: 8,183 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 7,082.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 4285592

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.

Safety89#1,716/15,637
Economy48#8,113/15,631
Housing59#6,082/14,977
Health65#5,503/15,609
Healthcare89#1,758/15,650
Environment46#8,276/15,453
Education64#5,617/15,649
Infrastructure26#11,547/15,650
Community78#3,388/15,651
Leisure & amenities43#8,945/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Wilson, Pennsylvania ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Northampton 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 · high57.0%
97/100Pennsylvania 52.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNorthampton County value
Hospital quality rating · high4.5
94/100Pennsylvania 3.5United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesNorthampton County value
Mammography screening · high55.0%
91/100Pennsylvania 51.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNorthampton County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationNorthampton County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100Pennsylvania 1.0United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationNorthampton County value
Traffic deaths · low6.0 /100k
89/100Pennsylvania 9.0 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataNorthampton County value

Weaknesses

Child care cost burden · high39.9%
9/100Pennsylvania 34.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNorthampton County value
New homes permitted · low0.0 /1k
13/100Pennsylvania 2.0 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Drought exposure · high70%
23/100Pennsylvania 26%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAANorthampton County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,367 /100k
24/100Pennsylvania 3,115 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNorthampton County value
Public libraries · low0.3 /10k
25/100Pennsylvania 0.5 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesNorthampton County value
Broadband subscriptions · low87.5%
26/100Pennsylvania 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.

Child poverty rateWorsening
6.8% (2015-2019) → 15.4% (2020-2024)
+8.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
80.6% (2015-2019) → 87.5% (2020-2024)
+6.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
1.9× (2015-2019) → 2.5× (2020-2024)
+31%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Average commute timeImproving
33.6 min (2015-2019) → 25.0 min (2020-2024)
−26%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Median household incomeImproving
$66,915 (2015-2019) → $82,902 (2020-2024)
+24%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
8.9% (2015-2019) → 4.5% (2020-2024)
−4.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Wilson, Pennsylvania improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 8 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

Commute−8.6 min33.6 min → 25.0 min
Household income+24%$66,915 → $82,902

Declined2

Inequality+0.0790.368 → 0.447
Price / income+0.6×1.9× → 2.5×

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Wilson, Pennsylvania between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	33.6 min2015-2019	25.0 min2020-2024	−8.6 min	Improved	97%
Bachelor's degree or higher	20.1%2015-2019	23.4%2020-2024	+3.4 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Broadband subscriptions	80.6%2015-2019	87.5%2020-2024	+6.9 points	Within the margin of error	43%
High school diploma or higher	88.2%2015-2019	87.6%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Home price to income ratio	1.9×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	+0.6×	Declined	42%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3682015-2019	0.4472020-2024	+0.079	Declined	8%
Median household income	$66,9152015-2019	$82,9022020-2024	+24%	Improved	41%
Poverty rate	6.8%2015-2019	10.5%2020-2024	+3.7 points	Within the margin of error	17%
Rent as share of income	29.4%2015-2019	28.3%2020-2024	−1.1 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Rent-burdened households	48.5%2015-2019	46.5%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Unemployment rate	6.8%2015-2019	4.1%2020-2024	−2.8 points	Within the margin of error	88%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.9%2015-2019	4.5%2020-2024	−4.4 points	Within the margin of error	84%

“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 Wilson, Pennsylvania five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Wilson, 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, Wilson, Pennsylvania itself moved −3.5 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

8,183 residents (±36)

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

2,888 households (±245)

Wilson, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Under $25k14%†408
$25k–50k20%†570
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,888 households (±245)

Wilson, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Own59%1,716
Rent41%1,172

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

3,812 workers (±339)

Wilson, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania share

Drive alone73%2,797
Carpool7.5%†285
Public transit2.4%†

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 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ

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 Northampton County, the county holding most of Wilson's residents.

Northampton County has 6,529 employer establishments, 203 for every 10,000 residents (0.82× the US rate of 248; 0.86× Pennsylvania's), with 121,192 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,792. The Census Bureau also counts 23,120 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 6,529; 23,120 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 203; US 248 · Pennsylvania 236
Paid employees: 121,192
Average annual pay: $56,792; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	579	18	0.98×About typical	8,600	$21,232	134
Ambulatory health care services	479	14.9	0.72×Fewer than typical	5,558	$82,850	1,078
Specialty trade contractors	425	13.2	0.86×About typical	3,111	$68,996	1,519
Full-service restaurants	279	8.7	1.13×About typical	4,708	$22,961	68
Limited-service restaurants	227	7.1	0.88×About typical	3,091	$19,907	49
Services to buildings and dwellings	218	6.8	1.01×About typical	1,274	$35,182	1,208
Lessors of real estate	215	6.7	0.54×Fewer than typical	746	$58,235	2,503
Personal care services	210	6.5	1.37×More than typical	1,062	$29,763	720
Truck transportation	190	5.9	1.17×About typical	2,574	$61,405	817
Religious organizations	183	5.7	1.03×About typical	1,474	$22,995	—
Construction of buildings	181	5.6	0.75×Fewer than typical	806	$65,388	633
Building equipment contractors	177	5.5	0.92×About typical	1,313	$69,719	302

Rank places for an industry Open Northampton County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 320,993 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 $1,875 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Wilson, Pennsylvania: $0.23 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1,875; −89% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.23; US $1,994
Sole-source: 100%; 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

Drug Enforcement Administration$1,875100%

Top recipients

INDUSTRIAL COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY$1,875100.0%

Spending by fiscal year

82.6KFY2017
76.3KFY2018
125.1KFY2019
99.8KFY2020
46.7KFY2021
37.1KFY2022
41.7KFY2023
28.8KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Wired telecommunications carriers · 5171$1,875100.0%

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

Wilson, Pennsylvania's figures are part of those of Northampton County, PA ($18.4M 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: Wilson is mostly in Northampton County.

See federal money in Northampton 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.

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

House

Ryan MackenzieR-PA-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 94%Missed 1.9%

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.

Northampton County83100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ74

Other cities and towns in Northampton 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/4285592

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends