Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Kingston is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C− overall, 962nd of 1032 graded towns in Pennsylvania, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is safety: it reports less crime per resident than 49% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in schools: its public schools trail 75% of Pennsylvania towns on state tests and graduation. A typical home there costs about $235K, 3.6 years of the Scranton metro’s $65K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 91% of U.S. towns, with 1 place on the National Register. Kingston is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns. 18% of residents live below the poverty line in Kingston, above both Pennsylvania’s towns (7.6%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Wyoming Seminary is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Kingston beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Kingston is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 638 in 1860, a peak of 21,600 in 1930, 13,349 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1844 and 5 maps from 1893 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Kingston. Close and well known come first.
15 mi National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site61K visitors a year
35 mi LakeLake Wallenpaupack
20 mi State parkRicketts Glen State Park
19 mi State parkHickory Run State Park11 mi Theme parkRocky Glen Park
32 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 Kingston, 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 Kingston.
Kingston is healthier than towns with similar incomes, trades workers with Wilkes-Barre and other neighbors and is safe by national standards but not by Pennsylvania’s.
Its public schools are run by Wyoming Valley West SD. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming Valley West MSLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,139 | C− |
| Wyoming Seminary College Preparatory School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 742 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Kingston has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 18° and about 45 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 7,525 U.S. towns with household incomes like Kingston’s, it is healthier than 64%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Kingston beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 38% of adults have obesity in Kingston.
| Kingston | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 38% | 36% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 24% | 25% |
| What stands out | Kingston | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 7.8% | 5.8% |
| More smokers | 18.3% | 15.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.7% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Home values rose 40% in five years, to about $235K, against 23% across Pennsylvania.
53% of Kingston households own their home. The typical Kingston home is worth about $235,000, up 3.3% in a year, 18% below the Pennsylvania typical home.
| Kingston | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 53% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,038 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Kingston has about as many jobs (5,909) as working residents, but only 560 people both live and work here. Jobs based here fell from 8,821 in 2013 to 5,909.
Most working residents leave Kingston for work: only 10% work in town. Jobs based in Kingston fell to 5,909 in 2023, 2,912 fewer than in 2013. Kingston’s median household income is $55,000.
| Kingston | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $55,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 10% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Work from home | 13% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.2 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves. The trail density in Kingston is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Church Street Park | — | 11 |
| 2. Hamilton Park | 0.1 mi | 9 |
| 3. Korn Street Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Pennsylvania average. 32% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Pennsylvania.
| Kingston | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 37.9 years | 43.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 23% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 32% | 29% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 19% | 21% | 18% |
53% women, 47% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.1 points. Across Pennsylvania, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Kingston | PA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.3% | 10.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.4% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.1% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.4% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.3% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.8% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.8% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.8% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.1% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 27.4% | 32.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 16.9% | 15.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 14% | 8.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.7% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.9% | 14.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 108 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Kingston.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 19.1 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 73% of Pennsylvania’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
6 within 15 miles of the center of Kingston
About 5 of every 100 Kingston residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
30 notable people were born in Kingston.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Kingston is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located on the western bank of the Susquehanna River opposite Wilkes-Barre. Kingston was first settled in the early 1770s, and incorporated as a borough in 1857. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,349, making it the most populous borough in Luzerne County.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Kingston.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kingston | #962 | C− | C+ | B− | C | C+ |
| Wilkes-Barre | #1019 | D | B− | C− | D | D |
| Edwardsville | #1030 | D− | B− | — | C | D |
| Pringle | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Forty Fort | #536 | B | B | A+ | C | B |
| Plains Township | #994 | D | B− | B− | D | C− |
Edwardsville reports no FBI crime data of its own. Pringle isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Kingston with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Kingston grades C− overall, better than 19% of U.S. towns and #962 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades C+ for health, B− for safety and C for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a C.
Pennsylvania has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Kingston sits nearer the middle.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
30 notable people were born here, including Edie Adams and Frank Zane.
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