CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

39.88° N · 75.61° W · GEOID 4212440

Chadds Ford

Chester County, Pennsylvania · part of the Philadelphia, PA metro

Limited data population under 5,000, core figures borrowed from county or metro: median_gross_rent

PennsylvaniaChadds Ford, PAChadds FordChadds Ford

The short answer

Chadds Ford is home to 1,341 people. Median household income is $184,286 a year and median rent is $1,763 a month, 11.5% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $516,300, about 2.8x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,763
29% above the median place
Median household income
$184,286
130% above the median place
Median home value
$516,300
62% above the median place
Unemployment
3.8%
23% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Chadds Ford

  • Only 0% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 98% of the 2,214 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 255 Pennsylvania places.
  • 96% of homes are owner-occupied, more than in 98% of places its size. It is the 3rd-highest of 271 Pennsylvania places.
  • The median rent takes only 11.5% of the median household's income, a smaller share than in 96% of places its size. It is the 2nd-lowest of 271 Pennsylvania places.
  • The median household earns $184,286 a year, more than in 96% of places its size.
  • 73% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, a larger share than in 95% of places its size.

Rent is light relative to pay, but the county has a FEMA natural hazard risk score of 92 out of 100. Budget for insurance before counting the savings.

01

Moving to Chadds Ford

Chester County loses about 0.4 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in20,743
Moved out20,945
Net−202

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Within Pennsylvania, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within PennsylvaniaOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$112K
Leavers$113K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Chester County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
5.6% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 1.9% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Chester County report $112,200 a year in income on average; those leaving, $113,100.
Income you would need
$70,500 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,763 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,865 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $516,300.
Getting to work
35 minutes each way on average; 24.9% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Zionsville, IN matches it on character. Compare the two
Income of households moving out7
$113,106
61% above the median place
Income of households moving in7
$112,207
59% above the median place
Moved from another state1
1.9%
7% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure5.6%2% below
Moved from another state1County figure1.9%7% below
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure-0.433% above
Income of households moving in7County figure$112,20759% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$113,10661% above
02

What it costs to live here

Renters paying 30%+ is 0.0%, below the median place (median 50.6%).

Chadds Ford11.5%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$70,520
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
11.5%
44% below the median place
Home price to income
2.8x
26% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
11%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$162,200
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Chadds Ford, $1,763 a month, and local prices for everything else (100.4 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Chadds Ford.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Chadds Ford? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Renters paying 30%+1
0.0%
below the median place (median 50.6%)
Homeownership1
96.2%
45% above the median place
Property tax paid (median)1
$6,880
111% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1County figure$1,76329% above
Rent to income111.5%44% below
Property tax rate11.3%46% above
Home price to income12.8x26% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure102.52% above
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,86015% above
HUD area median income4County figure$122,70014% above
Property tax paid (median)1$6,880111% above
Median home value1$516,30062% above
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure4.7%48% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure51.7%0% above
Homeownership196.2%45% above
Renters paying 30%+10.0%below (median 50.6%)
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,86553% above
Vacant homes1County figure3.6%49% below
Median year built119830% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Median household income1
$184,286
130% above the median place
Income per person1
$85,365
113% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$184,286130% above
Income per person1$85,365113% above
Unemployment1County figure3.8%23% below
Average annual pay6County figure$90,77538% above
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure3.3%11% below
Jobs6County figure253,65968% above
Poverty rate1County figure6.0%44% below
Mean commute135 min39% above
Works from home124.9%100% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

High school or higher is 100.0%, 8% above the median place.

High school or higher1
100.0%
8% above the median place
Bachelor's or higher1
73.1%
128% above the median place
Household size1
2.8
12% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Median age42.6 +9%
Homes with broadband93.3% +1%
Born abroad8.2% −7%
All 8 people measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population11,3416646th largest
Median age142.69% above
Bachelor's or higher173.1%128% above
High school or higher1100.0%8% above
Household size12.812% above
Born abroad18.2%7% below
No health insurance1County figure4.4%31% below
Homes with broadband193.3%1% above
05

Life in Chadds Ford

14 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, one of them a National Historic Landmark.

  • Brandywine Battlefield listed 1966Landmark
  • Brinton's Mill listed 1971
  • Chad House listed 1971
  • Chadds Ford Historic District listed 1971
  • Gilpin Homestead listed 1971
  • Harvey, William, House listed 1971

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents0.0 −100%
Playgrounds per 10k7.5 −21%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k82.0 7.4×
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails2 km +0%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.6 −11%
Shops24.7 −18%
Arts, recreation and fitness5.3 +29%
Doctors' offices and clinics20.3 +0%
Child care centers2.5 +9%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Public school students11
674
86% below the median place
Public schools11
2
78% below the median place
Students per teacher11
11.0
29% below the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools11278% below
Public school students1167486% below
Students per teacher1111.029% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure18.611% below
Shops per 10k8County figure24.718% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure5.329% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure20.30% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure2.59% above
Parks per 10k90.0below (median 10.2)
Playgrounds per 10k97.521% below
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k982.0above (median 11.2)
Libraries per 10k90.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails92.00% above
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings10148% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Wildfire risk is 30.7, 50% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Chadds Ford. Larger places are fetched first.

Wildfire risk13
30.7
50% below the median place
Annual precipitation12
48.5 in
11% above the median place
Hurricane risk13
88.7
26% above the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureChadds FordAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high12County figure86°F1% below
January average low12County figure23°F11% below
Average temperature12County figure53°F3% below
Annual precipitation12County figure48.5 in11% above
Natural hazard risk13County figure91.91% below
Hurricane risk13County figure88.726% above
Tornado risk13County figure88.08% above
Wildfire risk13County figure30.750% below
Heat wave risk13County figure95.66% above
Median air quality index14County figure430% above
Good air days14County figure71.3%4% above
08

Chadds Ford in 2030: where the trends point

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median household income$184,286 (2024)$238,500$201,500 to $282,000+4.4%
Median home value$516,300 (2024)$716,000$520,000 to $986,000+5.6%

The median home would be worth 3.0 years of the median income in 2030, against 2.8 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Chadds Ford

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Zionsville, IN$1,792$172,024Compare
Libertyville, IL$1,637$165,667Compare
Dublin, OH$1,686$160,296Compare
Highland Park, IL$1,925$168,094Compare
Highland Park, ILDublin, OHLibertyville, ILZionsville, INChadds Ford, PAChadds FordZionsvilleLibertyvilleHighland ParkChadds FordZionsvilleLibertyville

Common questions

Is Chadds Ford a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Only 0% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 98% of the 2,214 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 255 Pennsylvania places. 96% of homes are owner-occupied, more than in 98% of places its size. It is the 3rd-highest of 271 Pennsylvania places. On cost, space and class size it scores 100 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Chadds Ford expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 11.5% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $516,300.

What salary do you need to live in Chadds Ford?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $70,520 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Chadds Ford?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Zionsville, IN, Libertyville, IL, Dublin, OH and Highland Park, IL.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  13. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  14. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Chadds Ford with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Chadds Ford itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/chadds-ford-pennsylvania

Citytistics. “Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/chadds-ford-pennsylvania/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.