Living in Wormleysburg, Pennsylvania: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 1.3% below the U.S. average in the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.5 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 Wormleysburg 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 town3 public schools. No public high school in town: the nearest is Capital Area School for the Arts Cs, about 2 miles away.
A hospital close byPenn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityBaltimore is about 68 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 Wormleysburg 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

Wormleysburg runs into the built-up area around Harrisburg (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: $223,400U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 20%Cumberland County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,426 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $88,250U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 44%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $2,496 a yearPennsylvania: $3,311
Homes built before 1940: 14%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 1%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 98.7U.S. average = 100 (the Harrisburg-Carlisle 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 20% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Harrisburg-Carlisle metro area, not Wormleysburg 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: 3,0782020: 3,053
Median age: 33.5 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 14%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 22%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 40%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 11%U.S.: 6%
College students: 7%share of all residents

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 (22%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (14%); government (10%)
Unemployment rate: 6%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 22 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 15%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 5%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center, Camp Hill, PA, in town. 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

3 public schools in Wormleysburg, run by West Shore SD and East Pennsboro Area SD. The nearest public high school is Capital Area School for the Arts Cs, about 2 miles away.

Colleges in or next to town: Harrisburg University of Science and Technology (1,000 to 4,999 students).

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: 77%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 93%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: 22°F
July average high: 85°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 18 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 111 a year
Rain and melted snow: 45.2 inches a year
Snow: 24 inches a year
Elevation: 407 feet

Weather station: Harrisburg 1 NE (3 miles away). 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

Harrisburg, PACity of 51,0002

Baltimore, MDMetro of 2.9 million68

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: Harrisburg, Baltimore.

Cumberland 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

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Appalachian National Scenic Trail9 miles
Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument14 miles
Gettysburg National Military Park32 miles
Eisenhower National Historic Site36 miles
Catoctin Mountain Park49 miles

Campus life. Check Harrisburg University of Science and Technology's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Wormleysburg's history on Wikipedia.

Know Wormleysburg?

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

Lemoyne, PA4,800 people, 1 miles
Camp Hill, PA8,200 people, 2 miles
Harrisburg, PA51,000 people, 2 miles
Lower Allen, PA7,600 people, 2 miles
Enola, PA6,500 people, 2 miles
New Cumberland, PA7,600 people, 3 miles

Smaller places

West Fairview, PA (unincorporated)1,208 people, 1 mile
New Market, PA (unincorporated)718 people, 4 miles
Enhaut, PA (unincorporated)1,197 people, 5 miles
Oberlin, PA (unincorporated)269 people, 5 miles
Bressler, PA (unincorporated)2,060 people, 5 miles
Dauphin, PA790 people, 8 miles
Messiah College, PA (unincorporated)2,329 people, 8 miles
New Kingstown, PA (unincorporated)748 people, 9 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.