Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA

Metro Area Profile

604,155 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metropolitan area.

79out of 100
Area Score
Top 3% of 379 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 7% of 379 metros measured81
GrowthTop 27% of 821 metros measured64
Housing affordabilityTop 34% of 822 metros measured99
ClimateTop 37% of 822 metros measured70
Physical resilienceTop 22% of 822 metros measured75
AccessTop 21% of 822 metros measured92
Economic stabilityTop 9% of 822 metros measured84
The quick read

Harrisburg-Carlisle ranks in the top 7% of published metro profiles for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.6% and median household income of $80,919.

Natural-hazard exposure is lower than in most comparable published metro profiles, placing Harrisburg-Carlisle in the top 22% for physical resilience.

A major airport is 18 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

At a glance

Population
604,155
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$80,919
Top 17% nationally
Density
373/sq mi
1621.8 sq mi of land
Median age
40.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
Nearest major airport
MDT
18 mi · Harrisburg Intl
Median home value
$253,100
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.6% is lower than 80% of the 379 measured US metros.

Employment grew 2.7% over the past year, to 307,260 employed residents.

36% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 81% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$1,437$80,919Top 17%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$654$43,785Top 16%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate10.1%Bottom 17%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute23.9 minBottom 47%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher35.8%Top 19%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Employment307,260Top 23%of 379June 2026
Employment change (3 years)1.2%Top 38%of 379June 2026
Employment change (year over year)2.7%Top 4%of 379June 2026
Labor force318,719Top 24%of 379June 2026
Labor force participation64.0%Top 24%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$63,660Top 34%of 3812025 OEWS
Median annual wage$49,610Top 30%of 3812025 OEWS
Metro employment335,010Top 20%of 3812025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.6%Bottom 11%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate3.6%Bottom 20%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032025/102026/065.82.8
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.6% in June 2026. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.
Largest occupations — Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides13,040$29,050
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand11,760$43,640
Registered Nurses9,210$96,770
Stockers and Order Fillers8,240$36,790
General and Operations Managers8,180$101,890
Fast Food and Counter Workers8,030$28,070

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,212 takes 18% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 3.1 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
18.0%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.1×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,212
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$253,100
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income3.13Bottom 45%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate68.0%Bottom 38%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±186259,155Top 10%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$18$1,212Top 22%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$3,694$253,100Top 35%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income18.0%Bottom 48%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate5.0%Bottom 3%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
64/ 100
Top 27% of 821 published city profiles
Permitting is decreasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 4% since 2020, reaching 615,361 in 2024.

At 2.6 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
1,549
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.6
Bottom 48% nationally
Year over year
+23%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
34.7%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024615k593k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 88°F and January a low of 25°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 41.0 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station HARRISBURG CPTL CY AP, 13.3 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND4.3"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation41.0"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low25°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high88°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing45°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

75 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and earthquake.

Inland floodingModerate
HurricaneElevated
EarthquakeModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, strong wind, heat wave, lightning, tornado, cold wave, drought, ice storm, wildfire, avalanche, hail.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Three things people look for are missing from every AreaProfile page, and each is missing for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offences reported to police are published by department rather than by town, and only where a department reported every month of the year. No municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — so there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Taxes and full cost of living
No public source publishes either with national coverage and a method open enough to check. Housing affordability above is computed from published rent, price and income, and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes — commuting cost in particular tends to offset suburban housing savings. Nothing here is individualised tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house. School attendance zones, insurance pricing and the character of a neighbourhood all vary within the places measured here.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 18 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Harrisburg IntlMDT18 mi10,001 ft
Baltimore/Washington Intl Thurgood MarshallBWI83 mi10,503 ft
Washington Dulles IntlIAD98 mi11,500 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 30, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.