Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Girard gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $160K, 2.5 years of the Erie metro’s $63K median household income. It grades A overall, 176th among Pennsylvania's 1032 graded towns. On the plus side, its public schools beat 76% of Pennsylvania towns on state tests and graduation. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 1 place on the National Register. Girard’s trail density is 1.3 miles per square mile, above both the Pennsylvania town median (0.4) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). Only 150 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns score higher on history. Girard is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 80% of U.S. towns.
Where Girard beats most towns.
Where Girard’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 Girard is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 400 in 1850, 2,993 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1911.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Girard, 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 Girard.
Girard pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and has homes that are cheap against local pay.
Girard sits close to Pennsylvania’s towns (8.2%) and above U.S. towns (4.3%) on this measure. 2.9 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Girard Park, at 103 acres with 1.1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Girard Park | 1.1 mi | 103 |
| 2. Girard Borough Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A− for schools comes with an A for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $161K.
Its public schools are run by Girard SD. Its two schools are below. The largest public high school is Girard HS, with 477 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice Avenue MSLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 443 | B |
| Girard HSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 477 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 91% of U.S. communities. Since 2017, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Girard.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 1,307 working residents takes 17.4 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
Most working residents leave Girard for work: only 6% work in town. Girard’s average trip to work is 17 minutes. Since 2013, Girard has lost 115 jobs, to 879 in 2023.
| Girard | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $71,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The property crime rate in Girard is 3.1 per 1,000 residents. Pennsylvania has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Girard sits closer to the middle.
| Girard | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.1 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.4 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Erie Intl Ap weather station, 9 miles away, records that 104 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Girard has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 80° and January nights drop to 21°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 35 to 64 are 43% of residents (38% statewide). 36% of Girard adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. Girard has lost 2.8% of its people since 2020, down to 2,906 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Girard | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 45.3 years | 43.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 36% | 29% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 18% | 21% | 18% |
47% women, 53% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±8 points. Across Pennsylvania, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Girard | PA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.5% | 10.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.4% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.7% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.8% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 21.2% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.8% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.6% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.3% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 33% | 32.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 11.1% | 15.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.6% | 8.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 28.6% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.5% | 14.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,900, single groups can be off by several points
Girard beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 17% of adults smoke cigarettes in Girard.
| Girard | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 16% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 81% | 79% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 38% | 36% |
| What stands out | Girard | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with arthritis | 35.2% | 30.4% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.8% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 2.5 years of the Erie metro’s $63K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 81% of Pennsylvania towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Girard. Close and well known come first.
Big draw39 mi LakeLake Erie
16 mi State parkPresque Isle State Park11 mi Theme parkWaldameer Park
18 mi LandmarkFort Le Boeuf
26 mi Theme parkConneaut Lake Park13 mi Theme parkSplash LagoonLake Erie: NOAA, Public domain · Presque Isle State Park: Ruhrfisch, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Le Boeuf: Charles M. Stotz ?, Public domain · Conneaut Lake Park: daveynin from United States, CC BY 2.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Girard
About 2 of every 100 Girard residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Girard is a borough in Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population had declined to 2,994 as of the 2020 census. As of the 2025 census estimates the population had declined further to 2,906. It is part of the Erie Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Girard.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Girard | #176 | A | A | B+ | A− | B− |
| Girard Township | #476 | B+ | B | — | A− | B− |
| Lake City | #440 | B+ | B+ | — | A− | C+ |
Girard Township and Lake City report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Girard with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Girard grades A overall, better than 91% of U.S. towns and #176 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades B− for health, B+ for safety and A− for schools.
Yes, by national standards. Pennsylvania has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Girard sits nearer the middle.
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $161,000, 44% 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 A.
2 notable people were born here, including Denman Thompson and Paul Lovejoy.
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