Median incomes in southcentral Pa. are higher than most around the state

HARRISBURG -- Households in the eight counties of southcentral Pennsylvania have higher incomes when compared to the entire state.

Cumberland County households have the highest median income in the region.

Incomes have declined in York County over the past five years, but have grown faster in Franklin County than elsewhere in southcentral Pennsylvania.

U.S. Census released the income data Thursday in the 2013-17 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. The data, compiled over a five-year period, is considered more accurate than one-year data.

More:Paychecks are bigger, but local workers could make more somewhere else in Pa.

More:Wages rise in Franklin County; tight labor market squeezes employers

Cumberland County ranked sixth among the state’s 67 counties with an annual household median income of $65,544.

Adams ranked ninth at $62,661.

York dropped to 10th at $61,707.

Lancaster was 11th at $61,492.

Perry was 13th at $60,847.

Franklin ranked 17th at $58,267.

Lebanon was 18th at $57,698.

Dauphin was 19th at $57,071.

The median household income in Pennsylvania was $56,951.

More:Click here to see a summary of Pennsylvania data, including median income

Most counties in the state had growing household incomes, but more than two-thirds of them had incomes below the state median.

Median income is the midpoint that divides income distribution into two equal groups, half earning more than the median and half earning less.

The Pennsylvania State Data Center compared the 2013-17 estimates to the 2008-12 estimates.

Twenty-two counties saw significant rises in their median household incomes between 2012 and 2017. Franklin County led southcentral Pennsylvania with an increase of $2,529. The greatest growth came in Greene ($5,353), Mifflin ($4,824) and Clinton ($4,386) counties. The state median household income increased $1,135.

York was one of two counties experiencing a significant decline in median household income from the 2008-12 estimates to the 2013-17 estimates. Income dropped by $1,124 in York County and $2,478 in Potter. Incomes also decreased slightly in Lebanon and Dauphin counties.

Chester ($92,417), Montgomery ($84,791) and Bucks ($82,031) had the highest median household incomes in 2013-17.

Forest ($37,106), Philadelphia ($40,649) and Potter ($41,406) counties had the lowest.

All dollars are reported in 2017 inflation-adjusted dollars.

The infographic below shows how median household income has changed between 2007 and 2016