Lower Burrell, Pennsylvania

Area Profile

11,633 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Lower Burrell, in Westmoreland County.

65out of 100
Area Score
Top 29% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
OpportunityTop 15% of 4,199 cities measured75
Schools2,781st of 4,162 cities measured37
Growth3,973rd of 4,224 cities measured21
Housing affordabilityTop 16% of 4,218 cities measured78
Climate2,779th of 4,225 cities measured65
Physical resilienceTop 11% of 4,226 cities measured90
Access2,813th of 4,226 cities measured87
Economic stabilityTop 38% of 4,226 cities measured64
The quick read

Lower Burrell ranks in the top 15% of cities measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.7% and median household income of $84,602. The unemployment rate is published for Westmoreland County, PA, which contains Lower Burrell, rather than for Lower Burrell alone.

In the public schools here, 38% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 13.6 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 2 units authorized over the past twelve months, against 3 the year before.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
11,633
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$84,602
Top 29% nationally
Density
1,032/sq mi
11.3 sq mi of land
Median age
46.8
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Pennsylvania
Metro area
Nearest major airport
LBE
27 mi · Arnold Palmer Rgnl
Median home value
$198,600
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Westmoreland County, PA, which contains Lower Burrell, is 3.7%, lower than in 74% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Westmoreland County, PA, which contains Lower Burrell, grew 2.1% over the past year, to 170,858 employed residents.

33% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 74% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsWestmoreland County, PA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$67,52342nd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftWestmoreland County, PA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$64,42834th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$7,8122024 ACS 5-Year$84,602Top 29%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$3,8972024 ACS 5-Year$46,074Top 22%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year7.7%Top 37%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.4 min2024 ACS 5-Year29.2 minBottom 38%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year33.1%Top 26%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year79.3%57th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentWestmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 2026170,858Top 36%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Westmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 2026+0.5%Top 37%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Westmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 2026+2.1%Top 8%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceWestmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 2026177,39565th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year80.8%Top 41%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wagePittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$65,230Bottom 33%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wagePittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$49,650Bottom 38%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year0.5%79th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Westmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 2026−0.9%Top 15%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateWestmoreland County, PA’s figureJuly 20263.7%Top 26%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year12.0%68th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202485k73k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $84,602 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — Pittsburgh, PA

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides37,200$29,250
General and Operations Managers31,020$100,840
Registered Nurses29,360$82,370
Retail Salespersons28,700$30,840
Fast Food and Counter Workers27,460$28,250
Cashiers20,950$29,470

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Westmoreland County, PA, which contains this city.

38% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 55% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 13.6 students for every full-time teacher across 8 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
9
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
13.6
across 8 of them
Math proficiency
38.4%
Bottom 26% in Pennsylvania
Reading proficiency
55.3%
Bottom 28% in Pennsylvania
All 9 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Valley JSHSNew Kensington-Arnold SD90515.315%43%
Roy A. Hunt El SchNew Kensington-Arnold SD60911.928%46%
Burrell HSBurrell SD56614.962%67%
Bon Air El SchBurrell SD44713.562%62%
Charles A Huston MSBurrell SD39913.335%64%
Berkey SchNew Kensington-Arnold SD28910.7——
Stewart El SchBurrell SD25914.458%70%
Martin SchNew Kensington-Arnold SD14713.4——
Northern Westmoreland Career & Technology CenterNorthern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center70.4——

69.0% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Pennsylvania’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 5% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 94.7, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area is up 37% over five years, and up 3.4% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $3,395 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.71% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,110, some 22% above the $911 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,110 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $44,400 a year, about 52% of the median household income here of $84,602.

The typical renter household here spends 27% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $911 a month.

A median home at $198,600 costs 2.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $96,641, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Cost of living
94.7

Prices here run about 5% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.

Rent as a share of income
27.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.1×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,110
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$911
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$198,600
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Lower Burrell’s median household income of $84,602, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure202394.7Top 25%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+3.4%54th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+36.7%34th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+78.9%26th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year2.1Top 35%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year84.5%68th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±2582024 ACS 5-Year5,40389th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$920Top 16%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,420Top 14%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,110Top 15%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$1422024 ACS 5-Year$911Top 43%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$9,8652024 ACS 5-Year$198,60053rd percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$2672024 ACS 5-Year$3,39577th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$8,8142024 ACS 5-Year$96,641Top 30%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.16%2024 ACS 5-Year1.71%86th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year27.4%Top 44%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±192024 ACS 5-Year01st percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year3.5%30th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1292024 ACS 5-Year19177th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

21/ 100
Ranks 3,973 of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been falling for the last 2 years of a series running from 2022 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

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 fallen 2% since 2020, to 11,542 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 2 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Westmoreland County, which contains Lower Burrell, gained about 0.3% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $67,523, close to the $64,428 of households that moved out.

At 0.2 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
2
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.2
Bottom 8% nationally
Year over year
−33%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202412k12k
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. It has been falling for the last 4 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
+0.3%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
29%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$67,523
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$64,428
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Allegheny County, PA 3,762 people · 36% of arrivals
  2. Fayette County, PA 904 people · 8.7% of arrivals
  3. Washington County, PA 528 people · 5.1% of arrivals
  4. Indiana County, PA 428 people · 4.1% of arrivals
  5. Armstrong County, PA 423 people · 4.1% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Allegheny County, PA 2,776 people · 29% of departures
  2. Fayette County, PA 725 people · 7.6% of departures
  3. Washington County, PA 465 people · 4.9% of departures
  4. Armstrong County, PA 440 people · 4.6% of departures
  5. Indiana County, PA 392 people · 4.1% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Westmoreland County, PA. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

2022202320242025161.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2022 (−80%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 83°F and January a low of 22°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 41.3 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 39, in the Good band, and no day in the year passed 100.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station PITTSBURGH ALLEGHENY CO AP, 19.1 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.6"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year562024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals41.3"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals22°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals83°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year02024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year392024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals44°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
39
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
56
90th percentile index
Days above 100
0
unhealthy for sensitive groups

A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

90 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and strong wind, with inland flooding alone responsible for 86% of it. Inland flooding and strong wind are independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large those hazards are.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 89% of measured US cities.

Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: lightning, inland flooding, strong wind, landslide, earthquake, winter weather, hail, hurricane, ice storm, heat wave, tornado, wildfire, avalanche, drought, coastal flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
17
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
122
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Lower Burrell's police department reported 17 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 122.

Westmoreland County has a modeled homicide rate of about 2.3 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 14.2 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 24.2 per 100,000 residents in Westmoreland County.

Homicide
2.3
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Firearm deaths, all intents
14.2
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
24.2
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
18.5
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Lower Burrell’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Lower Burrell (Westmoreland County) rather than Lower Burrell itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Arnold Palmer Rgnl at 27 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year87.5%Bottom 40%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle27 miBottom 32%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Bottom 38%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year10.3%Bottom 36%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Arnold Palmer RgnlLBE27 mi8,222 ft
Pittsburgh IntlPIT28 mi11,500 ft
Youngstown/Warren RgnlYNG69 mi9,003 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
65
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Other cities in Pittsburgh, PA

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
PittsburghAllegheny County304,75969Pittsburgh vs Lower Burrell
Bethel ParkAllegheny County32,88178Bethel Park vs Lower Burrell
MonroevilleAllegheny County28,29571Monroeville vs Lower Burrell
PlumAllegheny County26,72373
Allison ParkAllegheny County22,04580
New CastleLawrence County21,57948
BaldwinAllegheny County21,05771
MurrysvilleWestmoreland County20,81778
West MifflinAllegheny County19,19061
McKeesportAllegheny County17,38055
Franklin ParkAllegheny County15,23580
WhitehallAllegheny County14,81166

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Lower Burrell side by side with a similar place.

Lower Burrell vs West MifflinLower Burrell vs Tallmadge

Moving to Lower Burrell from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 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 every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in Lower Burrell

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Lower Burrell with census figures of its own, largest first.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
1506836,203$63,426$174,40062