Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Plenty in its favour, and one clear drawback. Its best grade is for safety (A+): it reports less crime per resident than 97% of U.S. towns. At B overall, Forty Fort ranks 536th of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It comes out better than 64% of U.S. towns. Walkability is another plus: it is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns. The drawback is schools (C): its schools rank behind 75% of the state's. Incomes are weaker too — the median household income is $74K, and just over one in ten residents live below the poverty line. Homes run about $238K for a typical one, 3.6 times the Scranton metro’s $65K median household income.
Figures: FBI crime data, 2025 · schools, state test and graduation results · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow.
Where Forty Fort beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Forty Fort is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 478 in 1880, a peak of 6,431 in 1960, 4,239 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1850 and 4 maps from 1893 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Forty Fort. Close and well known come first.
14 mi National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site61K visitors a year
34 mi LakeLake Wallenpaupack
21 mi State parkRicketts Glen State Park
20 mi State parkHickory Run State Park10 mi Theme parkRocky Glen Park
31 mi Ski areaCamelback Mountain Resort37 runs · 804 ft verticalSteamtown National Historic Site: National Park Service, Public domain · Lake Wallenpaupack: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Ricketts Glen State Park: en:User:Msitler, Public domain · Hickory Run State Park: Mtruch, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Camelback Mountain Resort: Calzarette at en.wikipedia, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Forty Fort, 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 Forty Fort.
Forty Fort reports less crime than Swoyersville or any other graded neighbor and has commutes shorter than most of Pennsylvania.
Its A+ tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Swoyersville (A−) comes closest. Reported crimes fell from 19 to 1 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
No violent crime was reported in Forty Fort.
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.2 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Wyoming Valley West SD runs its public schools. 626 students attend Forty Fort’s public school.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dana El CtrLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 626 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
0.1 miles of trail wind through 2 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Luzerne County Recreational Complex, at 110 acres.
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 20% | 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. Luzerne County Recreational Complex | 0.1 mi | 110 |
| 2. Betty Mascelli Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
In July, afternoons reach 85°; in January, nights fall to 18°, and about 45 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
57% of households are owner-occupiers in Forty Fort, against 78% in Pennsylvania’s towns and 73% across U.S. towns. Over the 12 months to September 2026, the typical home gained 2.9% in value. Also worth knowing: the town’s midpoint rent stands at $998 a month.
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 57% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $998 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The average commute for its 2,047 working residents takes 20 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
In Forty Fort, the average commute is 20 minutes. The median commute is under 5 miles. For residents locally, the share who live below the poverty line is 12%. The top destinations are Wilkes-Barre (17%), Plains Township (8%) and Kingston (6%).
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.9% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $74,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
18% of adults binge drink in Forty Fort, close to Pennsylvania’s towns (18%) and above U.S. towns (16%). The town tracks Pennsylvania closely on all 26 CDC measures. In Forty Fort, 37% of adults have obesity.
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 35% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 18% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 17% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 11% | 12% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Among residents in Forty Fort, 18% are under 18. Every broad age group is within 4 points of the Pennsylvania average. 29% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Pennsylvania.
| Forty Fort | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 18% | 20% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 21% | 18% |
| Median age | 40.2 years | 43.2 years | 40.5 years |
47% women, 53% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.1 points. Across Pennsylvania, 50.7% of residents are women. Median age: women 41.4, men 39.5.
| Forty Fort | PA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.3% | 10.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.4% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.9% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 19.2% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 17.5% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.4% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.8% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.1% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.3% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.2% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24.1% | 32.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 25.2% | 15.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 17.9% | 8.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 14.5% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.1% | 14.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,300, single groups can be off by several points
Federal disaster aid has reached households in Forty Fort after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2011. On expected storm and flood damage, Forty Fort sits above 56% of U.S. communities. Paid flood insurance claims locally since 1978: 36. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 78% come from inland flooding and 8% from cold waves.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
9 within 15 miles of the center of Forty Fort
About 5 of every 100 Forty Fort residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
2 places in Forty Fort on the National Register of Historic Places.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Forty Fort is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,233 at the 2020 census. Its neighbors are Wyoming (to the north), Plains Township (to the east), Kingston (to the south), and Swoyersville (to the west). The Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport and the Wyoming Seminary Lower School are both located in the borough.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Forty Fort.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forty Fort | #536 | B | B | A+ | C | B |
| Plains Township | #994 | D | B− | B− | D | C− |
| Kingston | #962 | C− | C+ | B− | C | C+ |
| Wyoming | #449 | B+ | B− | — | B− | A− |
| Swoyersville | #397 | B+ | A | A− | C | B+ |
Wyoming reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Forty Fort with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Forty Fort grades B overall, better than 64% of U.S. towns and #536 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades B for health, A+ for safety and C for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a C.
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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