Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Lancaster Township grades C− overall, 952nd among Pennsylvania's 1032 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. On the other side, its public schools trail 87% of Pennsylvania towns on state tests and graduation. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $89K. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: the typical home is worth about $279K, 3.2 years of the Lancaster metro’s $87K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 7 places on the National Register. Its National Register listings include James Buchanan House and Lancaster Watch Company. 40% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Lancaster Township, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 29%. The biggest park or preserve is Lancaster Community Park, at 21 acres.
Where Lancaster Township beats most towns.
James Buchanan House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 3,762 in 1790, 58,039 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1744 and 7 maps from 1902 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Lancaster Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lancaster 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 Lancaster Township.
Lancaster Township carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Pennsylvania (mostly inland flooding), but it trails West Lampeter Township and its other neighbors on schools.
Each of its 7 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D, West Lampeter Township highest at A.
Its public schools are run by Lancaster SD. Two of its 6 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Martin SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 623 | C− |
| Way of Jesus Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 100 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
| Lancaster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.8% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Windolph Landing Nature Preserve | 0.7 mi | 19 |
| 2. Lancaster Community Park | 0.1 mi | 21 |
| 3. Windolph Landing Park | 0.1 mi | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Most working residents leave Lancaster Township for work: only 3% work in town. Jobs based in Lancaster Township fell to 3,827 in 2023, 587 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Lancaster (19%), East Hempfield Township (9%) and Manheim Township (8%).
| Lancaster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.2% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $89,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 92% of Pennsylvania towns, with expected losses of about $324 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on. 99 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 12 properties have flooded more than once.
The FEMA risk score in Lancaster Township is 72 of 100. Since 1978, 99 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lancaster Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Lancaster Township has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 22° and about 21 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Lancaster Township beats the Pennsylvania average on 4 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 30% of Lancaster Township adults have high blood pressure.
| Lancaster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 34% | 35% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 6.9% | 8.1% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 14% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 18% | 16% |
| What stands out | Lancaster Township | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.4% | 8.8% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 6.5% | 7.7% |
| More uninsured adults | 10.7% | 5.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Pennsylvania average. 23% of residents are 65 or older in Lancaster Township. 40% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Pennsylvania.
| Lancaster Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 23% | 21% | 18% |
| Median age | 39.3 years | 43.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 22% | 20% | 22% |
54% women, 46% men
About 85 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.7 points). Across Pennsylvania, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Lancaster Township | PA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.6% | 10.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.3% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.7% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.3% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.6% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.6% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.2% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.8% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.9% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.9% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.5% | 32.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 14.7% | 15.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.9% | 8.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24.7% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.2% | 14.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lancaster Township. Close and well known come first.
25 mi Theme parkHersheypark3.0M visitors a year
6 mi Theme parkDutch Wonderland
36 mi GardenLongwood Gardens
9 mi MuseumRailroad Museum of Pennsylvania
26 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Stadium
13 mi MuseumEphrata CloisterHersheypark: Michael Gray, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Dutch Wonderland: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Longwood Gardens: P. Hughes, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania: Dough4872, Public domain · Hersheypark Stadium: 45BearsFan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ephrata Cloister: 1549bcp at English Wikipedia, Public domain
8 within 15 miles of the center of Lancaster Township
About 5 of every 100 Lancaster Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
16,149 counted in 2010 and 18,642 in 2020; an estimated 18,592 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 15.4% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
7 places in Lancaster Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Pennsylvania, United States
Lancaster is a city in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 58,039 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth-most populous city in the state. It is a core city within South Central Pennsylvania, with 552,984 residents in the Lancaster metropolitan area. Settled in the 1720s, Lancaster is one of the oldest inland cities in the US. It served as the capital of Pennsylvania from 1799 to 1812. The city's primary industries include healthcare, tourism, public administration, manufacturing, and both professional and semi-professional services. Lancaster is located 59 miles (95 km) southwest of Allentown and 61 miles (98 km) west of Philadelphia and is…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Lancaster Township.
All 7 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its C−; East Lampeter Township (B−) is closest. West Lampeter Township next door grades higher for schools (A to Lancaster Township’s D) and lower for cost of living (D to C).
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster Township | #952 | C− | C | — | D | B |
| Lancaster | #1002 | D | C+ | — | D | C |
| Pequea Township | #416 | B+ | C | — | A− | B+ |
| Manor Township | #309 | A− | C | A | A− | B |
| Millersville | #286 | A− | C | A | A− | B+ |
| West Lampeter Township | #479 | B+ | D | A | A | B− |
| East Hempfield Township | #256 | A | C | B+ | A− | A− |
| East Lampeter Township | #681 | B− | C | C+ | B+ | B− |
Lancaster Township, Lancaster and Pequea Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Lancaster Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Lancaster Township grades C− overall, better than 20% of U.S. towns and #952 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades B for health and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
