Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Johnstown grades D overall, 1004th among Pennsylvania's 1032 graded towns, mostly because of health and safety. Residents are less healthy than 97% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. It reports more crime per resident than 89% of U.S. towns, including 118 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. In its favor, homes are within reach, about $106K for a typical one, or 1.8 years of the Johnstown metro’s $58K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 100% of U.S. towns, with 11 places on the National Register. 32% of residents live below the poverty line in Johnstown, above both the Pennsylvania town median (7.6%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Johnstown is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns. Only 14 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns score higher on history.
Where Johnstown beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Cambria Iron Company| Widest gap | Johnstown | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 27.3% | 14.5% |
Cambria Iron Company is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier. Its 11 National Register listings are more than in 95% of Pennsylvania towns with a listing.
Census counts: 949 in 1840, a peak of 67,327 in 1920, 18,411 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1845 and 3 maps from 1904 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Johnstown is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Johnstown, 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 Johnstown.
Johnstown draws workers from Richland Township and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Pennsylvania rate.
At 1.8 years of the Johnstown metro’s $58K median household income, the typical home (about $106K) costs less against local pay than in 93% of Pennsylvania towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living. The typical value, about $106K, is 11% below its March 2023 peak.
The median rent in Johnstown is $644 a month. Typical home values rose 5.2% in the year to September 2026. 55% of Johnstown households own their home.
| Johnstown | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $644 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 43% | 44% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by Greater Johnstown SD. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Greater Johnstown SHS, with 917 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Johnstown MSLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–7 | Grades 5–7 | 615 | D |
| Greater Johnstown SHSLargest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | 917 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Against the 1,849 U.S. towns with household incomes like Johnstown’s, it is less healthy than 78%, so its D− isn’t only a matter of income. All 5 graded neighbors score healthier than its D−, from Stonycreek Township (C−) to Southmont (A−).
24% of adults smoke cigarettes in Johnstown. Among 1,035 Pennsylvania towns, just 7 have a lower share of adults who binge drink than Johnstown. 36% of adults get no exercise outside work in Johnstown.
| Johnstown | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 14% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 19% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 24% | 25% |
| What stands out | Johnstown | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 14.7% | 18.3% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 27.3% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
10,364 jobs are based in Johnstown, 1.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 19.7 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
About one in 4 of Johnstown’s working residents works in town. Johnstown’s median household income is $38,000. Since 2013, Johnstown has lost 1,937 jobs, to 10,364 in 2023.
| Johnstown | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $38,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 10% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Violent crime runs at 5.9 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Pennsylvania rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D. Reported crimes fell from 704 to 530 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Johnstown reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 89% report less.
| Johnstown | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.9 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 20.6 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
4.5 miles of trail in 7 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Roxbury Park, at 21 acres.
| Johnstown | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.5% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Roxbury Park | 0.6 mi | 21 |
| 2. Sandyvale Memorial Gardens and Concervency | 0.6 mi | 16 |
| 3. Central Park | 0.3 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Johnstown has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 19° and about 74 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 166 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Johnstown.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Johnstown. Close and well known come first.
Big draw17 mi National MemorialFlight 93 National Memorial286K visitors a year
8 mi DamSouth Fork Dam
4 mi National Historic SiteAllegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site163K visitors a year
40 mi MountainMount Davis20 mi Theme parkIdlewild and Soak Zone
18 mi MuseumFort LigonierFlight 93 National Memorial: James Steakley, CC BY-SA 3.0 · South Fork Dam: Ernest Walter Histed, Public domain · Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site: Matthew A. Lynn; Original uploader was Mosamiazaz at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Mount Davis: Wikiuser100, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Ligonier: The original uploader was Mind meal at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 2.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Johnstown
About 4 of every 100 Johnstown residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
20,978 counted in 2010 and 18,411 in 2020; an estimated 17,654 in 2025.
The decline has continued: down 4.1% since 2020, after 12.2% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
11 places in Johnstown on the National Register of Historic Places.
57 notable people were born in Johnstown.
City in Pennsylvania, United States
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,411 as of the 2020 census. Located 57 miles (92 km) east of Pittsburgh, it is the principal city of the Johnstown metropolitan area, which had 133,472 residents in 2020. It is also part of the Johnstown–Somerset combined statistical area, which includes both Cambria and Somerset counties. Once a bustling industrial center, like many cities in the Rust Belt, Johnstown was severely affected by the loss of jobs in the steel industry due to globalization and the movement of American manufacturing to overseas markets.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
10 towns share a border with Johnstown.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnstown | #1004 | D | A | D | D | D− |
| Lower Yoder Township | — | — | A− | — | D | C |
| Westmont | #442 | B+ | B− | — | B | B+ |
| Stonycreek Township | #879 | C | A | — | D | C− |
| West Taylor Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Oakland | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Southmont | — | — | B | — | B | A− |
| East Taylor Township | — | — | A− | — | C | C |
Lower Yoder Township, Southmont and East Taylor Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Lower Yoder Township, Westmont, Stonycreek Township, Southmont and East Taylor Township report no FBI crime data of their own. West Taylor Township and Oakland aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Johnstown with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Johnstown grades D overall, better than 10% of U.S. towns and #1004 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades D− for health, D for safety and D for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
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.
57 notable people were born here, including Carroll Baker and Steve Ditko.
