Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 183, settled in 1870.
Reading’s average trip to work is 28 minutes, above both the Kansas town median (20 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Reading has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 120 in 1880, a peak of 358 in 1920, 181 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 4 maps from 1889 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Reading, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Reading.
At 83 of 100, Reading’s FEMA risk score is against 49 of 100 in Kansas’ towns and 44 of 100 across U.S. towns.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Reading for work: only 0% work in town. 5.6% of residents live below the poverty line in Reading. The top destinations are Emporia (35%), Topeka (13%) and Wichita (4%).
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Reading has chilly winters and warm summers. Reading’s July high is 90°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Reading home is worth about $293,000, up 7.4% in a year, 19% above the Kansas typical home. The median rent in Reading is $725 a month.
| Reading | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 83% | 72% | 73% |
| Median rent | $725 a month | $975 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reading beats the Kansas average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 30% of Reading adults feel lonely.
| Reading | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 31% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 16% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 35% | 36% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| What stands out | Reading | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.2% | 9.9% |
| More adults seeing a dentist | 68.5% | 64.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Reading
About 4 of every 100 Reading residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Kansas.
Where Reading’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Lyon County, Kansas
Reading is a city in Lyon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 181.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Reading has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
2 notable people were born here, including Bob Price and Jim Barnett.