Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,852. Public schools that outperform most of Pennsylvania.
West Buffalo Township is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B overall, ranked 599th of 1032 in Pennsylvania, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its schools rank ahead of 71% of Pennsylvania towns. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $79K. Its lowest everyday mark is in health: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 61% of the country. A typical home there costs about $270K, 3.5 years of the Lewisburg area’s $76K median household income. 43% of the land in West Buffalo Township is conserved, against 8.2% in Pennsylvania’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. Bald Eagle State Forest, at 10,181 acres with 20.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
Where West Buffalo Township beats most towns.
Where West Buffalo Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far West Buffalo Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2008 and 4 maps from 1944 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in West Buffalo 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 West Buffalo Township.
West Buffalo Township keeps more of its land conserved than most of Pennsylvania and sends most of its workers to Mifflinburg and beyond, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Pennsylvania (mostly inland flooding).
Its 10,600 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 97% of Pennsylvania towns.
22 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bald Eagle State Forest | 20.6 mi | 10,181 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by Mifflinburg Area SD. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mifflinburg Area Intrmd SchLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 381 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
West Buffalo Township has 274 jobs for its 1,150 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave West Buffalo Township for work: only 3% work in town. At 21 minutes, West Buffalo Township’s average trip to work is where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 26 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Since 2013, West Buffalo Township has added 78 jobs, to 274 in 2023.
| West Buffalo Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 3% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 6.7% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 91% of Pennsylvania towns, with expected losses of about $381 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
West Buffalo Township’s FEMA risk score is 69 of 100. One flood insurance claim has been paid in West Buffalo Township since 2004.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
West Buffalo Township has chilly winters and pleasant summers. The July high in West Buffalo Township is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
19% of adults smoke cigarettes in West Buffalo Township. West Buffalo Township beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 15% of adults report frequent physical distress in West Buffalo Township.
| West Buffalo Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 24% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | West Buffalo Township | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 7.7% | 5.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.6% | 7.7% |
| More smokers | 18.9% | 15.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of West Buffalo Township
About 2 of every 100 West Buffalo Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Township in Pennsylvania, US
West Buffalo Township is a township in Union County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,820 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with West Buffalo Township.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Buffalo Township | #599 | B | B− | — | B+ | C+ |
| White Deer Township | #435 | B+ | A | — | B+ | C− |
| Mifflinburg | #299 | A− | B+ | B+ | B+ | B |
| Limestone Township | — | — | C+ | — | B+ | B− |
| Buffalo Township | #618 | B | B− | — | B+ | B+ |
| Lewis Township | — | — | B | — | B+ | C+ |
| Washington Township | — | — | C | — | B+ | C+ |
Limestone Township, Lewis Township and Washington Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. West Buffalo Township, White Deer Township, Limestone Township, Buffalo Township, Lewis Township and Washington Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare West Buffalo Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. West Buffalo Township grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #599 of 1032 in Pennsylvania. It grades C+ for health and B+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.