What is the cost of living in Reading?

Reading has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 97.1, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 85.4, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,575/month.

What is the median salary in Reading?

The median salary in Reading is $63,487 annually (mean: $67,234). Top occupations include Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Retail Salespersons.

The violent crime rate in the Reading area is 250 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1457 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Reading?

The state of PA has 2,930 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.6:1. Charter schools make up 6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Reading?

Childcare cost data is not currently available for Reading.

Is Reading a good place to relocate?

Reading has a Life Score of 44.7/100 (F), based on 6 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Reading sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Reading ranks #268 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Reading, PA

LiveAbility 46.5/100 places Reading #268 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

97.1
Cost index (US=100): $1,575
2BR rent / mo: $63,487
Median salary: 46.5
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Reading ranks #268 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (46.5/100), with its strongest marks in schools and safety.

#268
of 387 US metros · Near median: 13,078,751
metro-area population: 250
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,930
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (9/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Reading ranks #268 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 97.1 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,575/mo, median salary $63,487; LiveAbility Score 46.5/100, strongest in schools and safety.

Signature: LiveAbility 46.5/100 places Reading #268 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 97.1 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,575/mo.

LiveAbility 46.5/100 puts Reading in the bottom third (#268 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Reading area is 165,600.

Reading vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

47 Top 69% higher than 31% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Reading housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Reading MSA; housing RPP 85.4 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,575/mo.

Studio

$1,086

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,237

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,575

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,937

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,085

/month

Reading wages and employment

Reading posts 165,600 total employment with median salary $63,487 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$63,487

Mean Salary

$67,234

Total Employment

165,600

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$29,830
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$46,040
Retail Salespersons	$33,010
General and Operations Managers	$99,920
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$28,090

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Reading area from NCES.

Schools

2,930

Enrollment

1,664,154

Student:Teacher

13.6:1

Title I %

Life Score Breakdown

Reading's composite Life Score is 44.7/100 (F), computed across 6 of 7 dimensions (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized).

Cost

33/100

Weak

Wages

62/100

Above average

Rent

26/100

Weak

Crime

68/100

Strong

Schools

18/100

Bottom decile

Environment

53/100

Average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Reading ranks #268 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 46.5/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Schools (82/100)

Schools

82
Safety

68
Job market

62
Air quality

54
Cost of living

33
Low hazard

32
Housing

26
Climate

9

What this shows Reading's strongest dimensions are schools and safety; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 9/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Reading to

Monroe Montgomery Morgantown Morristown Mount Vernon-Anacortes Muncie

Metros near Reading on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Reading on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Reading cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Reading wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Reading?

Reading runs a $63,487 median salary at a 97.1 cost index, ranking #268 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Reading's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Reading head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Reading
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.