Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Selinsgrove's standout: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 95% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades A, ranked 230th of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It reports less crime per resident than 90% of U.S. towns and 27% of its land is conserved. 27% of the land in Selinsgrove is conserved, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 8.2% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Selinsgrove is home to Susquehanna University. Selinsgrove has 2 places on the National Register.
Where Selinsgrove beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,261 in 1860, 5,713 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1917 and 7 maps from 1893 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Selinsgrove is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Selinsgrove, 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 Selinsgrove.
Selinsgrove pairs an A overall with homes cheaper than the Pennsylvania norm and is shaped by its college students, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Pennsylvania (mostly inland flooding).
44.7% of residents are enrolled in college, against 6.1% statewide, which pulls the median age down.
7.5% of Selinsgrove residents are under 18, below both Pennsylvania’s towns (20%) and U.S. towns (22%). The median age in Selinsgrove is 22.8 years. Selinsgrove has lost 3.9% of its people since 2020, down to 5,488 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Selinsgrove | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 7.5% | 20% | 22% |
| Median age | 22.8 years | 43.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 34% | 29% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 18% | 21% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3 points. Across Pennsylvania, 50.7% of residents are women. Median age: women 22.3, men 23.0.
| Selinsgrove | PA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 4.4% | 10.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 3.1% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 45.3% | 9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.1% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.8% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 4.9% | 11.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 7.2% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.3% | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.9% | 8.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.7% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.4% | 32.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.6% | 15.1% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.4% | 8.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.8% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.2% | 14.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Its public schools are run by Selinsgrove Area SD. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Selinsgrove Area HS, with 744 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selinsgrove Intrmd SchLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 535 | B |
| Selinsgrove Area HSLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 744 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 44 to 6 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
Selinsgrove’s property crime rate is 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Selinsgrove | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
0.4 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Major Anthony Selin Park, at 24 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Major Anthony Selin Park | — | 24 |
| 2. Rotary Field | — | 3 |
| 3. Pump House Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Selinsgrove has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 20° and about 29 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 1,908 working residents takes 13.5 minutes, against 26.3 across Pennsylvania.
Among 1,035 Pennsylvania towns, just 4 have a lower average trip to work than Selinsgrove. 14% of working residents work locally in Selinsgrove. The top destinations are Monroe Township (6%), Penn Township (5%) and Harrisburg (3%).
| Selinsgrove | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 14 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.1% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 88% of Pennsylvania towns, with expected losses of about $500 per resident a year; that rating is what its C for hazard risk is built on. 337 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 76 properties have flooded more than once.
Since 1979, 337 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Selinsgrove.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 10,039 U.S. towns with household incomes like Selinsgrove’s, it is healthier than 81%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Selinsgrove beats the Pennsylvania average on 7 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 23% of Selinsgrove adults report frequent mental distress. Only 6 of the 1,035 Pennsylvania towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Selinsgrove.
| Selinsgrove | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 16% | 17% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 34% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 24% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| What stands out | Selinsgrove | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.1% | 8.8% |
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 8.1% | 11.6% |
| More adults in frequent mental distress | 22.7% | 16.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Selinsgrove grades A overall with a typical home of about $261K, below the Pennsylvania typical value; only 34 of the 112 Pennsylvania towns graded A− or better can say that. At about $261K, home values are up 5% in five years, against a rise of 23% across Pennsylvania.
The typical Selinsgrove home is worth about $261,000, up 6.2% in a year, 9% below the Pennsylvania typical home.
| Selinsgrove | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,059 a month | $1,116 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Selinsgrove. Close and well known come first.
37 mi Theme parkHersheypark3.0M visitors a year20 mi Theme parkKnoebels Amusement Resort
37 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Stadium
37 mi MuseumHershey's Chocolate World
37 mi Stadium & arenaHersheypark Arena
7 mi MuseumFort AugustaHersheypark: Michael Gray, CC BY-SA 2.0 · 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 · Fort Augusta: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Selinsgrove
College town 45 of every 100 Selinsgrove residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
6 notable people were born in Selinsgrove.
Borough in Pennsylvania, United States
Selinsgrove is the largest borough in Snyder County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population is estimated to be 5,761 for the 2020 Census. Selinsgrove is geographically located in the middle of the Susquehanna River Valley in Central Pennsylvania, along U.S. Routes 11 and 15, 45 miles north of Harrisburg and 5.7 miles (9.2 km) southwest of Sunbury. It is the home of Susquehanna University.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Selinsgrove.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selinsgrove | #230 | A | B− | A | B | B |
| Penn Township | #756 | C+ | B | — | B | B− |
| Lower Augusta Township | — | — | A− | — | B+ | C |
Lower Augusta Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Penn Township and Lower Augusta Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Selinsgrove with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Selinsgrove grades A overall, better than 88% of U.S. towns and #230 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades B for health, A for safety and B for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
6 notable people were born here, including Cummings C. Chesney and Jacob S. Coxey Sr..
