Living in Wernersville, Pennsylvania: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 2.9% below the U.S. average in the Reading metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.1 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Wernersville itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Conrad Weiser Hs, about 2 miles away.
A hospital close byPenn State Health St. Joseph in Reading, about 6 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityPhiladelphia is about 55 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Wernersville meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Wernersville runs into the built-up area around Reading (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $234,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 24%Berks County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,389 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $75,750U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 70%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $3,859 a yearPennsylvania: $3,311
Homes built before 1940: 24%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 4%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 97.1U.S. average = 100 (the Reading metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 24% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Reading metro area, not Wernersville alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 2,8312020: 2,766
Median age: 45.6 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 29%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 22%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 26%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 2%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (27%); manufacturing (16%); finance, insurance and real estate (10%)
Unemployment rate: 2%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 24 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 15%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 8%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Penn State Health St. Joseph, Reading, PA, about 6 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

1 public school in Wernersville, run by Conrad Weiser Area SD. The nearest public high school is Conrad Weiser Hs, about 2 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Pennsylvania's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 65%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 74%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 20°F
July average high: 85°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 16 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 124 a year
Rain and melted snow: 51.9 inches a year
Snow: 27 inches a year
Elevation: 370 feet

Weather stations: Blue Marsh Lake (5 miles away) and Reading 3.5 SW (5 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Penn State Health St. JosephEmergency room6

Reading, PACity of 96,0008

Philadelphia, PAMetro of 6.3 million55

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Penn State Health St. Joseph, Reading, Philadelphia.

Berks County is in a metro area of 250,000 to 1 million people (USDA rural-urban code 2, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Grand View Dairy Farm.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Appalachian National Scenic Trail14 miles
Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site18 miles
Valley Forge National Historical Park36 miles
First State National Historical Park43 miles
Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site55 miles

Read about Wernersville's history on Wikipedia.

Know Wernersville?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Sinking Spring, PA4,600 people, 3 miles
Robesonia, PA2,200 people, 3 miles
Whitfield, PA5,200 people, 4 miles
West Wyomissing, PA3,300 people, 5 miles
Mohnton, PA2,900 people, 6 miles
Adamstown, PA2,000 people, 6 miles

Smaller places

Springmont, PA (unincorporated)1,319 people, 4 miles
Reinholds, PA (unincorporated)2,168 people, 5 miles
West Lawn, PA (unincorporated)1,384 people, 5 miles
Lincoln Park, PA (unincorporated)1,801 people, 5 miles
Spring Ridge, PA (unincorporated)917 people, 5 miles
Montrose Manor, PA (unincorporated)630 people, 5 miles
Gouglersville, PA (unincorporated)694 people, 5 miles
Colony Park, PA (unincorporated)1,175 people, 6 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.