Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Foster Township gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $99K, 1.6 years of the Bradford area’s $63K median household income. It grades B overall, ranked 628th of 1032 in Pennsylvania. On the plus side, it has 107 miles of trail. Foster Township’s trail density is 2.3 miles per square mile, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 0.4 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Foster Township has 1 place on the National Register. Only 9 of the 1,037 Pennsylvania towns we compare have a lower January low than Foster Township.
Where Foster Township beats most towns.
Where Foster Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Foster Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 4,566 in 2000, 4,038 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 2003 and 4 maps from 1924 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Foster 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 Foster Township.
Foster Township has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, has seen reported crime fall by about half and has commutes shorter than most of Pennsylvania.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Allegany State Park | — | 19 |
| 2. Foster Brook Park | — | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Custer City Private School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 35 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
The average commute for its 1,740 working residents takes 18.2 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
Most working residents leave Foster Township for work: only 8% work in town. Foster Township’s average trip to work is 18 minutes, against 26 minutes in Pennsylvania’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. Jobs based in Foster Township grew to 1,280 in 2023, 73 more than in 2013.
| Foster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $70,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 9.8% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Foster Township beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 19% of adults smoke cigarettes in Foster Township.
| Foster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 24% | 23% |
| What stands out | Foster Township | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 7.8% | 5.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.4% | 7.7% |
| More smokers | 18.9% | 15.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Bradford 4sw Rsch 5 weather station, 7 miles away, records that about 1 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Foster Township has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Foster Township is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Reported crimes fell from 80 to 17 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 0 reported in 2025, 0 per 1,000 residents.
Foster Township’s violent crime rate is 0 per 1,000 residents. Pennsylvania has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Foster Township sits closer to the middle. Foster Township’s property crime rate is 4.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Foster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.4 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 54% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 36 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Foster Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
2 within 15 miles of the center of Foster Township
About 1 of every 100 Foster Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Township in Pennsylvania, United States
Foster Township is a township in McKean County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,038 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Foster Township.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foster Township | #628 | B | A− | B | B− | C |
| Bradford | #974 | C− | A− | D | B− | C− |
| Bradford Township | #574 | B | B+ | — | B− | C |
| Keating Township | #704 | B− | A | — | B | C+ |
| Foster Brook | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Otto Township | — | — | A+ | — | A | C+ |
Otto Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Bradford Township, Keating Township and Otto Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Foster Brook isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Foster Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Foster Township grades B overall, better than 56% of U.S. towns and #628 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades C for health, B for safety and B− for schools.
Yes, by national standards. Pennsylvania has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Foster Township 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 A−.
