McKeesport, Pennsylvania

Area Profile

17,380 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for McKeesport, in Allegheny County.

55out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 38% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
OpportunityTop 49% of 4,199 cities measured57
Schools3,402nd of 4,162 cities measured25
Growth3,109th of 4,224 cities measured38
Housing affordability2,879th of 4,218 cities measured58
Climate2,779th of 4,225 cities measured65
Physical resilienceTop 21% of 4,226 cities measured81
Access2,515th of 4,226 cities measured90
Economic stability4,174th of 4,226 cities measured15
The quick read

Unemployment is 3.6% and median household income $34,219, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured. The unemployment rate is published for Allegheny County, PA, which contains McKeesport, rather than for McKeesport alone.

In the public schools here, 24% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 12.2 students for every teacher.

Rent takes 38% of renter income here, above the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 1.4 times what its owners earn.

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
17,380
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$34,219
Bottom 6% nationally
Density
3,442/sq mi
5 sq mi of land
Median age
41.0
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Pennsylvania
Metro area
Nearest major airport
PIT
23 mi · Pittsburgh Intl
Median home value
$72,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Allegheny County, PA, which contains McKeesport, is 3.6%, lower than in 77% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Allegheny County, PA, which contains McKeesport, grew 2.1% over the past year, to 634,252 employed residents.

Median household income of $34,219 is lower than in 94% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsAllegheny County, PA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$72,54050th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftAllegheny County, PA’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$90,77376th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$7,3372024 ACS 5-Year$34,219Bottom 6%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,6772024 ACS 5-Year$23,197Bottom 15%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year32.0%Bottom 9%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.0 min2024 ACS 5-Year29.8 minBottom 35%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year11.0%Bottom 23%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±7%2024 ACS 5-Year68.4%24th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentAllegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 2026634,252Top 11%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Allegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 2026+1.0%Top 31%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Allegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 2026+2.1%Top 8%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceAllegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 2026657,89889th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year68.9%Bottom 24%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 ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year6.7%97th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Allegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 2026−0.9%Top 15%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateAllegheny County, PA’s figureJuly 20263.6%Top 23%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year11.2%65th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202434k32k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $34,219 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 Allegheny County, PA, which contains this city.

24% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 44% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.2 students for every full-time teacher across 5 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
6
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.2
across 5 of them
Math proficiency
24.3%
Bottom 7% in Pennsylvania
Reading proficiency
44.5%
Bottom 12% in Pennsylvania
All 6 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
McKeesport Area SHSMcKeesport Area SD96617.328%50%
Founders Hall Middle SchMcKeesport Area SD64210.213%36%
Twin Rivers El SchMcKeesport Area SD60711.019%29%
Young Scholars of Greater Allegheny CS · charterYoung Scholars of Greater Allegheny CS3169.627%52%
Propel CS-McKeesport · charterPropel CS-McKeesport30212.144%68%
McKeesport Area Technology CenterMcKeesport Area Technology Center0———

98.0% 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 $1,044 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.44% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,040, some 23% above the $848 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,040 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $41,600 a year, about 122% of the median household income here of $34,219.

The typical renter household here spends 38% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $848 a month.

A median home at $72,700 costs 1.4 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $50,397, 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
38.1%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
1.4×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,040
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$848
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$72,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against McKeesport’s median household income of $34,219, 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-Year1.4Top 13%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year50.9%10th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4412024 ACS 5-Year9,51094th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$860Top 12%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,330Top 9%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,040Top 10%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$1062024 ACS 5-Year$848Top 35%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$4,6702024 ACS 5-Year$72,7008th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1312024 ACS 5-Year$1,04425th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$6,2392024 ACS 5-Year$50,397Bottom 12%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.20%2024 ACS 5-Year1.44%75th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±8%2024 ACS 5-Year38.1%Bottom 14%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±232024 ACS 5-Year1468th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.1%52nd percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year19.2%87th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±2432024 ACS 5-Year1,84297th 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

38/ 100
Ranks 3,109 of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was broadly flat, in 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 3% since 2020, to 17,119 in 2024.

67% of the 0 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses. The multifamily share is published for Allegheny County, PA, which contains McKeesport, rather than for McKeesport alone.

Federal tax returns show Allegheny County, which contains McKeesport, lost about 0.7% 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 $72,540, below the $90,773 of households that moved out.

At 0.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
0
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.0
Bottom 1% nationally
Year over year
+44%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
67.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202418k17k
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
−0.7%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
59%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$72,540
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$90,773
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Westmoreland County, PA 2,776 people · 8.7% of arrivals
  2. Washington County, PA 2,019 people · 6.3% of arrivals
  3. Butler County, PA 1,713 people · 5.4% of arrivals
  4. Beaver County, PA 1,210 people · 3.8% of arrivals
  5. Philadelphia County, PA 410 people · 1.3% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Westmoreland County, PA 3,762 people · 9.7% of departures
  2. Washington County, PA 3,265 people · 8.4% of departures
  3. Butler County, PA 2,910 people · 7.5% of departures
  4. Beaver County, PA 1,833 people · 4.7% of departures
  5. Philadelphia County, PA 475 people · 1.2% 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 Allegheny County, PA. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

20222023202420250.00.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey.

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 52, in the Moderate band, and about 9 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

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, 4.1 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.6"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year772024 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 year92024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year522024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals44°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
52
Moderate on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
77
90th percentile index
Days above 100
9
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

81 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and tornado, with inland flooding alone responsible for 83% of it. Cold wave and tornado 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 79% of measured US cities.

Inland floodingModerate
AvalancheModerate

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

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
1,485
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
2,215
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.

McKeesport's police department reported 1,485 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 2,215.

Allegheny County records 5.6 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 10.9 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 27.5 per 100,000 residents in Allegheny County.

Homicide
5.6
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
10.9
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
27.5
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
14.2
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 McKeesport’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 McKeesport (Allegheny County) rather than McKeesport 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 Pittsburgh Intl at 23 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year80.5%Bottom 20%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle23 miBottom 38%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-Year17.2%Bottom 17%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Pittsburgh IntlPIT23 mi11,500 ft
Arnold Palmer RgnlLBE23 mi8,222 ft
Youngstown/Warren RgnlYNG77 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
55
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Other cities in Pittsburgh, PA

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
PittsburghAllegheny County304,75969Pittsburgh vs McKeesport
Bethel ParkAllegheny County32,88178Bethel Park vs McKeesport
MonroevilleAllegheny County28,29571Monroeville vs McKeesport
PlumAllegheny County26,72373
Allison ParkAllegheny County22,04580
New CastleLawrence County21,57948
BaldwinAllegheny County21,05771
MurrysvilleWestmoreland County20,81778
West MifflinAllegheny County19,19061
Franklin ParkAllegheny County15,23580
WhitehallAllegheny County14,81166
GreensburgWestmoreland County14,74169

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 McKeesport side by side with a similar place.

McKeesport vs East ClevelandMcKeesport vs Wilkinsburg

Moving to McKeesport 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 McKeesport

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in McKeesport with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track McKeesport closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
1513218,898$35,397$73,900—