Pennsylvania · County property tax · ACS 2024
Philadelphia County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Philadelphia County pays $2,003 a year, an effective rate of 0.82%, roughly in line with the U.S. average.
- $2,003
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.82%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +1%
- vs U.S. average
- #66 of 67
- rank in PA
The verdict
Homeowners in Philadelphia County pay a median $2,003 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.82%, more affordable than 49% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,003
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.82%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1614 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +1%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($243,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Pennsylvania. Population: 1,579,706. Owner-occupied homes: 351,905.
The median annual property tax in Philadelphia County is $2,003, which is 40% lower than the Pennsylvania state average and 1% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.82% on a median home value of $243,100. Property taxes represent 3.2% of the median household income in this county.
Philadelphia County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Philadelphia County's 0.82% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 49%).
Decision signal 2
High among Pennsylvania counties by effective rate
Philadelphia County ranks #66 of 67 counties in Pennsylvania by effective rate (1% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Pennsylvania median
Homeowners in Philadelphia County pay a median annual property tax of $2,003, roughly in line with the national median and well below the Pennsylvania state median. On a $243,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.82% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Philadelphia County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $61,953 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Philadelphia County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
A falling rate took the edge off
Philadelphia County's effective rate fell 15.2% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 41.7%, leaving the median bill 20.1% higher at $2,003. That rate move is larger than the one in 65% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $1,668 to $2,003, a gain of 20%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 96,679 of 351,905 owner-occupied homes (27.5%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
Earnings are below the national midpoint while the rate is above it, and the median bill equals 3.2% of median household income. The gap between those two positions is the whole story on this page.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
Philadelphia County is an outlier inside Pennsylvania
Across the 67 Pennsylvania counties with a published rate, the average effective rate is 1.26%. Philadelphia County is at 0.82%, which sits 2.0 standard deviations below that average. Fewer than one county in twenty nationally is this far from its own state's centre, so a state-level average is a poor guide to what is owed here.
Standard deviations are computed across every county in the state with a published effective rate for 2024; states with fewer than five such counties are not assessed.
What Philadelphia County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Philadelphia County homeowners, 96,679 of 351,905 owner-occupied homes (27.5%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 12.6% (44,321)
- $800 to $1,499 21.4% (75,470)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.6% (47,977)
- $2,000 to $2,999 20.3% (71,477)
- $3,000 or more 27.5% (96,679)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
15,981 homes here (4.5%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Pennsylvania handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Philadelphia County, mortgaged homeowners pay 27% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Philadelphia County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Philadelphia County's effective rate is higher than 1% of the 67 counties in Pennsylvania - ranking #66 of 67.
Where Philadelphia County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.82% more affordable than 49% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
Below Pennsylvania on both measures
Philadelphia County's effective rate runs 37% under the Pennsylvania median and its bill 40% under. Both sitting on the same side means the gap is not a valuation artefact: a county can post a low rate purely because its homes are expensive, but then the bill rises to meet the state. Here it does not, so the $2,003 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Pennsylvania norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Philadelphia County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Philadelphia County | Pennsylvania Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 3.2% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Philadelphia County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Pennsylvania counties.
Philadelphia County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,003 +2.6% | 0.82% |
| 2023 | $1,952 +4.8% | 0.84% |
| 2022 | $1,863 +6.5% | 0.86% |
| 2021 | $1,749 +4.9% | 0.95% |
| 2020 | $1,668 | 0.97% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Philadelphia County: tax-to-income at 3.2%
Counties near Philadelphia County's effective rate
On effective rate, Philadelphia County sits nearest Lane County (OR), Monroe County (OH), Brown County (OH).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are New Hanover County (NC), Charlton County (GA), Durham County (NC).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Philadelphia County: only 6% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 40,450 of 690,400 returns from Philadelphia County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,865 - 33% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Pennsylvania
Philadelphia County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Philadelphia County?
- Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania scores F (37/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is rate relief at D (0.82%). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania?
- The median annual property tax in Philadelphia County is $2,003, an effective rate of 0.82% on a $243,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Philadelphia County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Philadelphia County run roughly in line with the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.82% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Philadelphia County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Philadelphia County jumped 20.1% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,668 to $2,003, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Philadelphia County?
- Property taxes in Philadelphia County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $61,953 median household income.
What to do with Philadelphia County's UNDER rate
Inside Pennsylvania, Philadelphia County's $2,003 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Pennsylvania overview →
Philadelphia County ranks #66 of 67 Pennsylvania counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Pennsylvania overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Philadelphia County's UNDER effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.82%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,003/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Philadelphia County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Philadelphia County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Cumberland County, IL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,004/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.59% vs Philadelphia County 0.82%.
Shackelford County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,004/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.15% vs Philadelphia County 0.82%.
Madison County, ID
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,001/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.48% vs Philadelphia County 0.82%.
Meade County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,005/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.35% vs Philadelphia County 0.82%.
Pennsylvania county set
State ACS overview for every published Pennsylvania county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Philadelphia County stamps UNDER · MID - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Philadelphia County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.