Manchester, PA Keystone Marker, 2009
Manchester’s story
212 years in pictures
Census counts: 406 in 1870, 2,800 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 2009 and 6 maps from 1908 on.
- 1814Manchester is settled
ManchesterPA
Trash day: MondayPopulation
2,821
2025 Census estimate · +0.2% since 2020
Median home value
$196K
Census ACS
Household income
$77K
median
Median age
32.9
years
Jobs based here
698
A commuter town
TownGrade
A−
#298 of 1032 in PA
Is Manchester a good place to live?
Manchester gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $196K, 2.3 years of the York metro’s $85K median household income. It grades A− overall, ranked 298th of 1032 in Pennsylvania. On the plus side, the median household earns $77K. Manchester’s average trip to work is 35 minutes, above both the Pennsylvania town median (26 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Manchester's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 84% of U.S. towns.
What makes Manchester stand out
Where Manchester beats most towns.
A commuter town
98% of working residents leave Manchester for work
Where Manchester’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
698jobs based in Manchester
2%of working residents work in town
10 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Manchester grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Manchester is from typical.
Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 14% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listAOpen →Jobs & incomeAOpen →HealthWellspan York Hospital 7.9 miles awayB+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 8.1 of 20; 9.6% of households have no car; 0% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →Cost of livingBOpen →SchoolsBOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Nearby attractions
All 111 attractions →Hersheypark and 42 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Manchester. Close and well known come first.
16 mi Theme parkHersheypark3.0M visitors a year
26 mi National MonumentCarlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument
16 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Stadium
16 mi MuseumHershey's Chocolate World
16 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Arena
32 mi Ancient siteGettysburg BattlefieldSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Hersheypark: Michael Gray, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Hersheypark Stadium: 45BearsFan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hershey's Chocolate World: Phillyfan0419, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hersheypark Arena: Hersheyarena4ever at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Gettysburg Battlefield: Veggies, Public domain
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Manchester: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Manchester, and how to reach them.
PowerMet-EdEIAHIFLD · EIA
WaterThe York Water Company1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpMondayTown’s haulerTown site
Register to voteOnlineIn Pennsylvania you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person until 15 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereYork County Board of ElectionsYork County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2024
ZIP code1734517345 99%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Manchester.
Manchester has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it has lost a quarter or more of its jobs in ten years.
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A
Manchester faces a very low natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 86% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Manchester since 2018.
14risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingHurricanes
1
paid flood claims since 2018
3
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
SchoolsB
Manchester’s public schools outperform 57% of Pennsylvania districts
Its public schools are run by Northeastern York SD. Its three schools are below. The largest public high school is Northeastern SHS, with 1,189 students.
57%of PA districts it outscoresBSchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shallow Brook Inter SchLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–6 | Grades 4–6 | 507 | B |
| Northeastern SHSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,189 | A− |
| Orendorf El SchTop results in townGrades K–3 | Grades K–3 | 350 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A
Manchester has 0.5 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Jobs based here fell from 956 in 2013 to 698. The average commute for its 1,409 working residents takes 34.5 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
Most working residents leave Manchester for work: only 2% work in town. Since 2013, Manchester has lost 258 jobs, to 698 in 2023. The top destinations are York (8%), East Manchester Township (8%) and Manchester Township (7%).
2%work in town
| Manchester | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.8% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Work from home | 14% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.2% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Manchester2%
York8%
East Manchester Township8%
Manchester Township7%
Springettsbury Township6%
10 mi
median commute distance
698
jobs based in Manchester
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 34% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthB+
On CDC estimates, Manchester is healthier than 71% of U.S. towns
Manchester beats the Pennsylvania average on 3 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of adults binge drink in Manchester.
71%healthier than U.S. townsB+Health Grade
| Manchester | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 19% | 19% |
26 measures vs. Pennsylvania
3 better22 too close to call1 worse
| What stands out | Manchester | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 3.1% | 3.7% |
| Fewer adults in fair or poor health | 16.6% | 18.7% |
| More uninsured adults | 7.7% | 5.8% |
Wellspan York Hospital
7.9 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
70th
percentile among PA towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Manchester has four seasons and pleasant summers
Manchester has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 22° and about 24 inches of snow falls in a winter.
24″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter24–41°
Spring41–63°
Summer63–84°
Fall45–65°
Nov 2
typical first frost
Apr 9
typical last frost
+1.9°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
2%conserved
2%
conserved · 10 of 492 acres
0.0 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Dauberton Park | — | 4 |
| 2. Machester Playground & Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HousingCost of living grade B
Homes in Manchester sell for about $461K
At 2.3 years of the York metro’s $85K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 86% of Pennsylvania towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living.
59% of Manchester households own their home.
$461Kmedian sale price
| Manchester | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 59% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,130 a month | $1,114 a month | $1,185 a month |
2
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Manchester
18pages on Manchester
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
4 within 15 miles of the center of Manchester
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State YorkUniversity or college · Public · York7.5 mi$15,208 in-state tuitionYork College of PennsylvaniaUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · York8 mi$25,588 tuitionElizabethtown CollegeUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Elizabethtown9 mi$37,950 tuition
About 6 of every 100 Manchester residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
About Manchester
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Manchester is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,798 at the 2020 census. It is part of the York–Hanover metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1814
- Area
- 0.8 sq mi
- Elevation
- 453 ft
- ZIP code
- 17345
Manchester’s neighbors
One town shares a border with Manchester.
Mount WolfManchester
How the neighbors grade
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester | #298 | A− | B | — | B | B+ |
| Mount Wolf | — | — | B | — | B | B+ |
Mount Wolf has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Manchester and Mount Wolf report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Manchester with a neighbor →
Questions about Manchester
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Manchester, PA a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Manchester grades A− overall, better than 83% of U.S. towns and #298 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades B+ for health and B for schools.
Is Manchester, PA expensive?
The typical home is worth about $196,000, 32% 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 B.