Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Plymouth grades D overall, ranked 1025th of 1032 in Pennsylvania, mostly because of safety and health. Its police reported 57 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 95% of U.S. towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 92% of the country. What it does well: it is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns. Plymouth’s rate of reported violence is 9.8 per 1,000 residents, above both Pennsylvania’s towns (0.7) and U.S. towns (1.6). On incomes, just 110 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns do worse. Plymouth's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 83% of U.S. towns.
Where Plymouth beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 2,684 in 1870, a peak of 16,996 in 1910, 5,763 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1858 and 6 maps from 1891 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Plymouth is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Plymouth. Close and well known come first.
18 mi National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site61K visitors a year
39 mi LakeLake Wallenpaupack
17 mi State parkRicketts Glen State Park
20 mi State parkHickory Run State Park
34 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 Plymouth, 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 Plymouth.
Plymouth is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at 4 times the Pennsylvania rate and carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Pennsylvania (mostly inland flooding).
Violent crime runs at 9.8 per 1,000 residents, 4 times the Pennsylvania rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on that grade. Reported crimes fell from 245 to 185 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
In Plymouth, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 22 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Wyoming Valley West SD runs its public schools. The largest public high school is Wyoming Valley West SHS, with 1,362 students. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming Valley West SHSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,362 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Against the 2,146 U.S. towns with household incomes like Plymouth’s, it is less healthy than 55%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
The share of adults in Plymouth who sleep under 7 hours: 42%. In Plymouth, 18% of adults report frequent physical distress, and 20% report frequent mental distress.
| Plymouth | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 16% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Plymouth | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 25.8% | 14.5% |
| More uninsured adults | 10.1% | 5.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.3% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 2.3 years of the Scranton metro’s $65K median household income, the typical home (about $153K) costs less against local pay than in 86% of Pennsylvania towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living. Values fell 4.4% in the past year while the Pennsylvania typical home rose 2.2%.
The typical rent in Plymouth is $930 a month. Home values are down 4.4% over the year to September 2026. In Plymouth, nearly half of households live in a home they own.
| Plymouth | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $930 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The top destinations are Wilkes-Barre (14%), Hanover Township (11%) and Plains Township (5%). For residents in Plymouth, the share who live below the poverty line is 24%. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs here rose by 153, to 888. The average commute for Plymouth comes to 22 minutes.
| Plymouth | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 24% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $39,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 5.1% | 12% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of Pennsylvania towns, with expected losses of about $315 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
For Plymouth, the natural-hazard score from FEMA is 73 of 100. 76 flood insurance claims have been paid here since 1978. Expected losses in Plymouth break down as 78% from inland flooding and 9% from cold waves. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Plymouth after 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2011.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
In July, afternoons reach 85°; in January, nights fall to 18°, and about 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
5 within 15 miles of the center of Plymouth
About 4 of every 100 Plymouth residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Where Plymouth’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
18 notable people were born in Plymouth.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Plymouth is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, located 4 miles (6 km) west of Wilkes-Barre, along the Susquehanna River. The population was 5,763 as of the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Plymouth.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plymouth | #1025 | D | B | D | C | D |
| Plymouth Township | — | — | A− | — | C− | C |
| Larksville | #993 | D | C+ | — | C | B− |
| Hanover Township | #936 | C− | B− | B− | C− | C− |
Plymouth Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Plymouth Township and Larksville report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Plymouth with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Plymouth grades D overall, better than 5% of U.S. towns and #1025 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades D for health, D for safety and C for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 2.3 years of the area's median household income ($65,158 across the Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
18 notable people were born here, including Regina Buggy and Frank Comerford Walker.
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