Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Taken together, its subjects give Bethel Township an A+ overall, better than 98% of U.S. towns. The ranking puts it 56th of 1032 in Pennsylvania. Its strongest subject is incomes: the median household earns $177K. Add schools to its strengths: its public schools beat 95% of Pennsylvania towns on state tests and graduation. What holds it back is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $524K, 5.7 years of the Philadelphia metro’s $91K median household income. Booth Farm is on the National Register of Historic Places. Only 111 of Pennsylvania’s 1,751 towns score higher on hazard risk. Only 129 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns score higher on health.
Figures: incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · FEMA National Risk Index · health, CDC PLACES · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Bethel Township beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Bethel Springs El Sch | K–5 | 537 |
Booth Farm
Its founding year, 1683, comes before those of 96% of the Pennsylvania towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 222 in 1790, 9,574 in 2020. The archive holds 14 old photos and papers going back to 1875 and 6 maps from 1896 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Bethel Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bethel Township. Close and well known come first.
Big draw20 mi MuseumUSS New Jersey
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaLincoln Financial Field
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaXfinity Mobile Arena
Big draw19 mi Ancient siteIndependence Hall3.0M visitors a year
Big draw19 mi MuseumEastern State Penitentiary
Big draw24 mi MuseumLynnewood HallUSS New Jersey: Camera Operator: PH3 BRYANT, Public domain · Lincoln Financial Field: The original uploader was Betp at French Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Xfinity Mobile Arena: Jen Smith, CC BY 3.0 · Independence Hall: Mys 721tx, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Eastern State Penitentiary: Davidt8, Public domain · Lynnewood Hall: Shuvaev, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bethel Township, 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 Bethel Township.
Bethel Township has less tooth loss than most of Pennsylvania, sends most of its workers to Philadelphia and beyond and is safe by national standards but not by Pennsylvania’s.
That grade comes with a C− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $524K.
The public schools here belong to Garnet Valley SD. Its one school is below. Bethel Township’s only public school teaches 537 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel Springs El SchLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 537 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Pennsylvania is tooth loss: 7.4% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.5% statewide. Against the 1,455 U.S. towns with household incomes like Bethel Township’s, it is less healthy than 71%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
In Bethel Township, 14% of adults report frequent mental distress, and 11% report frequent physical distress. Of 26 CDC measures, Bethel Township beats the Pennsylvania average on 11 and trails it on 1. Among adults here, 28% have obesity, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 35% and U.S. towns at 35%. Just over a tenth of Bethel Township adults smoke cigarettes.
| Bethel Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 35% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Bethel Township | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.4% | 14.5% |
| Fewer adults in fair or poor health | 13.9% | 18.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 8.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected damage from storms and floods is lower here than in 95% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 6.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 69% of Pennsylvania’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 0.3 per 1,000 residents.
Bethel Township’s rate of reported violence stands at 0.3 per 1,000 residents, close to Pennsylvania’s towns (0.7) and below U.S. towns (1.6). The rate of thefts and burglaries in the town is 5.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Bethel Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.3 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.7 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Bethel Township has 1,202 jobs for its 4,709 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here grew from 874 in 2013 to 1,202.
Jobs in Bethel Township grew by 328 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 1,202. Among residents in the town, 1.8% live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Philadelphia (15%), Concord Township (7%) and Wilmington (5%). The town’s average commute is 29 minutes.
| Bethel Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $177,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 20% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 1.8% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 25° and about 12 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Walkers can cover 0.6 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The density of trails for Bethel Township comes to 0.1 miles per square mile. Parks and preserves here: 4, covering 9 acres.
| Bethel Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.2% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Clayton County Park | — | 4 |
| 2. Jack King Park | 0.1 mi | 2 |
| 3. Northminster Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
16 within 15 miles of the center of Bethel Township
About 5 of every 100 Bethel Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
Where Bethel Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 notable people were born in Bethel Township.
Township in Pennsylvania, US
Bethel Township is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It contains the two unincorporated communities of Booth's Corner and Chelsea. The population was 9,574 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Bethel Township.
At #56 in PA, it grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Concord Township (A) comes closest.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel Township | #56 | A+ | C− | A | A+ | A |
| Upper Chichester Township | #790 | C+ | C | C+ | C | B |
| Concord Township | #199 | A | D− | — | A+ | A |
| Aston Township | #235 | A | C− | A− | A− | A− |
Concord Township reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Bethel Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Bethel Township grades A+ overall, better than 98% of U.S. towns and #56 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades A for health, A for safety and A+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
3 notable people were born here, including Powell Clayton and W. H. H. Clayton.
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