Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Forest Hills's standout: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 97% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades A−, 356th among Pennsylvania's 1032 graded towns. Residents are healthier than 92% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and natural-hazard risk is low. Its weakest subject is schools: its schools rank behind 86% of the state's. 57% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Forest Hills, against 29% in Pennsylvania’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. The biggest park or preserve is Forest Woodland Park, at 28 acres.
Where Forest Hills beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Forest Hills is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 97% of comparable towns) to D for schools (better than 14%), so the A− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 4,549 in 1930, a peak of 9,561 in 1970, 6,429 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 4 maps from 1904 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Forest Hills. Close and well known come first.
Big draw9 mi Stadium & arenaAcrisure Stadium
3 mi Theme parkKennywood
8 mi LandmarkFort Duquesne
8 mi Stadium & arenaPNC Park
7 mi Stadium & arenaPPG Paints Arena
3 mi GardenFrick ParkAcrisure Stadium: Fo2grfr, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Kennywood: Ski2007 of English Wikipedia, Public domain · Fort Duquesne: Sébastien Paquin, CC BY-SA 3.0 · PNC Park: alpineinc, CC BY 2.0 · PPG Paints Arena: Jleedev, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Frick Park: Lee Paxton, CC BY-SA 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Forest Hills, 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 Forest Hills.
Forest Hills has homes that are cheap against local pay, has less tooth loss than most of Pennsylvania and sees little violent crime.
2.0 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Forest Hills’ trail density is 1.3 miles per square mile.
| Forest Hills | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 7% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Forest Woodland Park | 0.9 mi | 28 |
| 2. Forest Hills Park | 0.8 mi | 23 |
| 3. Ryan Glen Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trinity Christian School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades K–12 | Grades K–12 | 449 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Pennsylvania is tooth loss: 6.7% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.5% statewide.
13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Forest Hills. Forest Hills beats the Pennsylvania average on 15 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 18% of adults get no exercise outside work in Forest Hills.
| Forest Hills | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 24% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 17% | 14% |
| What stands out | Forest Hills | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.7% | 14.5% |
| Fewer smokers | 11.1% | 15.8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.3% | 8.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 92% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Forest Hills.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Violent crime is rare: 6 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
Pennsylvania has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Forest Hills sits closer to the middle.
| Forest Hills | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8.2 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Forest Hills has chilly winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 21° and about 25 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
28.1% of workers work from home, against 15.6% across Pennsylvania.
Most working residents leave Forest Hills for work: only 2% work in town. 28% of Forest Hills workers work from home. The top destinations are Pittsburgh (43%), Monroeville (5%) and West Mifflin (2%).
| Forest Hills | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 28% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 4.3% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 2.6 years of the Pittsburgh metro’s $76K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 78% of Pennsylvania towns; that ratio is one input to its B− for cost of living.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
15 within 15 miles of the center of Forest Hills
About 5 of every 100 Forest Hills residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Forest Hills is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,429 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The borough was named after Forest Hills, Queens.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Forest Hills.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Hills | #356 | A− | B− | B+ | D | A |
| Braddock Hills | — | — | A− | — | D | C |
| Wilkins Township | #850 | C | B− | — | D | C+ |
| Churchill | #237 | A | B− | A− | D | A |
| North Braddock | #883 | C | A | — | D | C− |
Braddock Hills has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Braddock Hills, Wilkins Township and North Braddock report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Forest Hills with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Forest Hills grades A− overall, better than 78% of U.S. towns and #356 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades A for health, B+ for safety and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes, by national standards. Pennsylvania has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Forest Hills sits nearer the middle.
The typical home is worth about $201,000, 30% below the Pennsylvania typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
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