county

Berks County, PA

Demographic and economic profile of Berks County, PA, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Berks County holds a population of 439,117 with modest 3.2% growth over five years, anchored by a workforce of 64.5% labor force participation and median worker earnings of $43,426. Educational attainment skews toward trade and technical levels, with 88.4% holding a high school diploma but only 27.2% reaching a bachelor's degree or higher. Housing costs remain relatively contained—median home value of $239,700 and median gross rent of $1,143/month—against a median household income of $79,777, with a 71.3% homeownership rate and a 25.4-minute mean commute suggesting a largely settled, place-rooted workforce.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

439,117

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Household Income

$79,777

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

39.9 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+3.2% since 2018

Berks County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone301,447 (69.6%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race39,673 (9.2%)
  • Some Other Race Alone37,970 (8.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races25,148 (5.8%)
  • Black or African American Alone19,969 (4.6%)
  • Asian Alone5,859 (1.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish68,175
  2. 2.Other Indo-European3,409
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic3,217
  4. 4.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)1,312
  5. 5.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic1,207

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

22.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

60.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

17.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

9.7%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

18,922

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$46,482

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$39,012

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

5.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

11.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance49,102
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)37,728
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)25,451
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services20,590
  5. 5.Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities14,038

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations75,657
  2. 2.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations44,152
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations41,175
  4. 4.Service Occupations32,529
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations19,024

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Manufacturing (LQ 1.79×)37,625
  2. 2.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 1.27×)4,294
  3. 3.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.12×)5,476
  4. 4.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.09×)13,542
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.08×)24,758

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$239,700

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$1,143/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

71.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,99924,279 (20.9%)
  • $200,000 to $249,99918,489 (15.9%)
  • $250,000 to $299,99914,447 (12.4%)
  • $400,000 to $499,99911,440 (9.8%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9999,486 (8.2%)
  • $175,000 to $199,9997,418 (6.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

27.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

88.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

64.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$43,426

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

25.4 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

8.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone153,069 (73.5%)
  • Worked At Home24,746 (11.9%)
  • Carpooled18,830 (9.0%)
  • Walked5,306 (2.5%)
  • Other2,598 (1.2%)
  • Public Transit2,017 (1.0%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.