What is the median rent in Swarthmore, PA?

Name: Median rent in Swarthmore, PA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Swarthmore, PA is $1,532 (±$175) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 460 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Swarthmore, the median gross rent went from $1,021 in 2015–2019 to $1,532 in 2020–2024 (+50.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,532 (±$175)
Rented homes: 460 (±128)
$2,000 or more: 5.2%
Since 2015–2019: +50.0%

How much rent costs in Swarthmore

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Swarthmore	Delaware County	Pennsylvania	United States
Less than $500	0.0% (±6.8 points)	4.7%	8.3%	6.3%
$500 to $999	17.2% (±11.5 points)	14.5%	26.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	29.8% (±16.7 points)	40.7%	32.9%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	47.8% (±18.9 points)	23.4%	19.3%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	5.2% (±7.9 points)	9.4%	7.7%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	0.0% (±6.8 points)	3.0%	2.6%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	0.0% (±6.8 points)	4.4%	2.8%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,500 to $1,999, paid by 47.8% of renting households.

5.2% of rented homes in Swarthmore cost $2,000 or more a month.

Swarthmore against Delaware County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Swarthmore	Delaware County	Pennsylvania	United States
Median gross rent	$1,532 (±$175)	$1,372 (±$22)	$1,209 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	460 (±128)	64,381 (±1,897)	1,530,443 (±10,042)	42,849,984

In Swarthmore, median gross rent is not measurably different from Delaware County ($1,372).

It is also higher than in Pennsylvania ($1,209).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

In Delaware County, Swarthmore ranks 18 of 48 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 219 of 2,369.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Swarthmore has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,021 (±$288)	$1,532 (±$175)	+50.0%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	23.4% (±7.6 points)	24.0% (±6.5 points)	+0.6 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	8.5% (±13.5 points)	0.0% (±6.3 points)	−8.5 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Swarthmore

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Swarthmore
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Swarthmore	—	$1,532 (±$175)	—
Nether Providence Township	0.9 mi	$2,158 (±$364)	Higher
Rutledge	1.1 mi	$1,679 (±$1,398)	Not measurably different
Folsom	1.3 mi	$1,540 (±$231)	Not measurably different
Morton	1.3 mi	$1,257 (±$85)	Lower
Ridley Township	1.6 mi	$1,298 (±$116)	Lower
Woodlyn	1.7 mi	$1,196 (±$301)	Not measurably different
Springfield Township (Delaware County)	1.9 mi	$1,459 (±$141)	Not measurably different
Rose Valley	2.0 mi	$2,900 (±$1,636)	Not measurably different

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Morton, PA ($1,257), Ridley Township, PA ($1,298).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Nether Providence Township, PA ($2,158).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Delaware County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
12	Marple Township	$1,683 (±$139)
13	Rutledge	$1,679 (±$1,398)
14	East Lansdowne	$1,626 (±$395)
15	Upper Providence Township (Delaware County)	$1,566 (±$165)
16	Sharon Hill	$1,552 (±$218)
17	Aston Township	$1,544 (±$203)
18	Swarthmore	$1,532 (±$175)
19	Brookhaven	$1,487 (±$174)
20	Springfield Township (Delaware County)	$1,459 (±$141)
21	Clifton Heights	$1,430 (±$293)
22	Media	$1,411 (±$106)
23	Norwood	$1,409 (±$510)
24	Darby Township	$1,405 (±$132)

Showing 13 of 48 places in Delaware County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Swarthmore

What is the average rent in Swarthmore, PA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Swarthmore is $1,532 (±$175) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Swarthmore?

In Swarthmore, the median gross rent went from $1,021 in 2015–2019 to $1,532 in 2020–2024 (+50.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Swarthmore cost more than $2,000 a month?

5.2% of rented homes in Swarthmore have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 0.0% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Swarthmore higher than in Delaware County?

In Swarthmore, median gross rent is not measurably different from Delaware County ($1,372).

It is also higher than in Pennsylvania ($1,209).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Swarthmore borough, Pennsylvania (place:75648, in state:42).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

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

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.