Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Berwick gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $212K, 3.3 years of the Bloomsburg area’s $65K median household income. It grades C+ overall, 831st among Pennsylvania's 1032 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. The median household income is $50K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line, and CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 83% of the country. On the plus side, it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 86% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 2 places on the National Register. 20% of working residents work locally in Berwick, above both the Pennsylvania town median (6.3%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). On history, just 161 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns do better.
Where Berwick beats most towns.
Jackson Mansion and Carriage House
William H. Woodin
Census counts: 317 in 1820, a peak of 14,010 in 1950, 10,327 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1884 and 6 maps from 1894 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Berwick is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Berwick, 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 Berwick.
Berwick is healthier than towns with similar incomes and sees little violent crime, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Pennsylvania (mostly inland flooding).
Against the 5,727 U.S. towns with household incomes like Berwick’s, it is less healthy than 57%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
21% of adults smoke cigarettes in Berwick. Berwick beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 13. 31% of adults get no exercise outside work in Berwick.
| Berwick | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 16% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 24% | 25% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Berwick | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 9.2% | 5.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.3% | 7.7% |
| More smokers | 21.1% | 15.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by Berwick Area SD. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Berwick Area HS, with 692 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Berwick El SchLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–4 | Grades K–4 | 487 | B− |
| Berwick Area HSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 692 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
60% of Berwick households own their home. The typical Berwick home is worth about $212,000, up 1.5% in a year, 26% below the Pennsylvania typical home. The median rent in Berwick is $797 a month.
| Berwick | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 60% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $797 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of Pennsylvania towns, with expected losses of about $376 per resident a year; that rating is what its C for hazard risk is built on.
Berwick’s FEMA risk score is 68 of 100. Since 1981, 24 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Berwick.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Berwick has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 19° and about 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 4,430 working residents takes 20 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
About one in 5 of Berwick’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Berwick has lost 273 jobs, to 3,739 in 2023. The top destinations are Salem Township (6%), South Centre Township (5%) and Bloomsburg (5%).
| Berwick | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $50,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 9% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Violent crime is rare: 6 reported in 2024, 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
Pennsylvania has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Berwick sits closer to the middle.
| Berwick | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.7 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 10.5 per 1,000 residents | 6.7 | 11.5 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
| Berwick | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.7% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sponsler Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Berwick. Close and well known come first.
20 mi State parkRicketts Glen State Park
39 mi National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site61K visitors a year
30 mi State parkHickory Run State Park
38 mi Park & preserveRoadside America
30 mi MuseumAsa Packer MansionRicketts Glen State Park: en:User:Msitler, Public domain · Steamtown National Historic Site: National Park Service, Public domain · Hickory Run State Park: Mtruch, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Roadside America: Mark Fleisher, President and CEO of Aim Advertising in Lewisburg, PA,, Public domain · Asa Packer Mansion: Chris18240 (talk), Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Berwick
About 3 of every 100 Berwick residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
2 places in Berwick on the National Register of Historic Places.
24 notable people were born in Berwick.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Berwick is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The municipality is situated on the border of Luzerne County. The county line bisects the urban area, separating the Borough of Berwick in Columbia County from East Berwick in Luzerne County. Berwick is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania and is located 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Wilkes-Barre. In the 2020 census, Berwick had a population of 10,355. It is one of the two principal communities of the Bloomsburg–Berwick metropolitan area, which covers Columbia and Montour counties, and had a combined population of 85,562 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Berwick.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berwick | #831 | C+ | B+ | B | C+ | C− |
| Briar Creek Township · Briar Creek | #670 | B− | B+ | A | C+ | C |
| Mifflin Township | — | — | C+ | — | A | B− |
| Foundryville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Mifflin Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Mifflin Township reports no FBI crime data of its own. Foundryville isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Briar Creek and Briar Creek Township are one community, graded once. Compare Berwick with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Berwick grades C+ overall, better than 36% of U.S. towns and #831 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades C− for health, B for safety and C+ for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes, by national standards. Pennsylvania has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Berwick sits nearer the middle.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
24 notable people were born here, including William H. Woodin and Richard Sharpe Shaver.
