What is the median rent in Wilkes-Barre, PA?

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

The median gross rent in Wilkes-Barre, PA is $946 (±$62) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 7,659 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Wilkes-Barre, the median gross rent went from $766 in 2015–2019 to $946 in 2020–2024 (+23.5%).

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: $946 (±$62)
Rented homes: 7,659 (±456)
$2,000 or more: 2.1%
Since 2015–2019: +23.5%

How much rent costs in Wilkes-Barre

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Wilkes-Barre	Luzerne County	Pennsylvania	United States
Less than $500	14.0% (±3.1 points)	10.5%	8.3%	6.3%
$500 to $999	40.2% (±4.4 points)	39.2%	26.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	33.7% (±4.5 points)	35.2%	32.9%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	10.0% (±2.2 points)	11.4%	19.3%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	1.1% (±0.8 points)	2.3%	7.7%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	0.0% (±0.4 points)	0.4%	2.6%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	1.0% (±1.0 points)	1.1%	2.8%	6.8%

The most common range is $500 to $999, paid by 40.2% of renting households.

2.1% of rented homes in Wilkes-Barre cost $2,000 or more a month.

Wilkes-Barre against Luzerne County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Wilkes-Barre	Luzerne County	Pennsylvania	United States
Median gross rent	$946 (±$62)	$1,004 (±$25)	$1,209 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	7,659 (±456)	40,628 (±1,268)	1,530,443 (±10,042)	42,849,984

In Wilkes-Barre, median gross rent is not measurably different from Luzerne County ($1,004).

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

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

In Luzerne County, Wilkes-Barre ranks 49 of 70 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 1222 of 2,369.

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

How rent in Wilkes-Barre 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	$766 (±$28)	$946 (±$62)	+23.5%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	53.3% (±2.0 points)	48.8% (±2.7 points)	−4.5 percentage points	Measurable decrease
Rental vacancy rate	6.0% (±1.8 points)	5.1% (±1.9 points)	−0.9 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 Wilkes-Barre

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Wilkes-Barre
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Wilkes-Barre	—	$946 (±$62)	—
Wilkes-Barre Township	1.2 mi	$1,149 (±$43)	Higher
Georgetown (community)	1.4 mi	$1,089 (±$55)	Higher
Kingston	1.4 mi	$1,038 (±$62)	Higher
Edwardsville	2.0 mi	$1,069 (±$250)	Not measurably different
Forty Fort	2.3 mi	$998 (±$86)	Not measurably different
Plains	2.4 mi	$889 (±$219)	Not measurably different
Pringle	2.5 mi	$1,137 (±$136)	Higher
Ashley	2.6 mi	$1,071 (±$178)	Not measurably different

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Wilkes-Barre Township, PA ($1,149), Georgetown (community), PA ($1,089), Kingston, PA ($1,038).

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

Median gross rent across Luzerne County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
43	Avoca	$986 (±$100)
44	Pittston Township	$983 (±$444)
45	Exeter	$981 (±$93)
46	Dupont	$973 (±$161)
47	West Pittston	$968 (±$158)
48	Conyngham Township (Luzerne County)	$950 (±$271)
49	Wilkes-Barre	$946 (±$62)
50	Freeland	$939 (±$159)
51	Conyngham	$934 (±$75)
52	Plymouth	$930 (±$94)
53	Jackson Township (Luzerne County)	$917 (±$552)
54	Wyoming	$899 (±$96)
55	Hazle Township	$887 (±$213)

Showing 13 of 70 places in Luzerne 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 Wilkes-Barre

What is the average rent in Wilkes-Barre, PA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Wilkes-Barre is $946 (±$62) 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 Wilkes-Barre?

In Wilkes-Barre, the median gross rent went from $766 in 2015–2019 to $946 in 2020–2024 (+23.5%).

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 Wilkes-Barre cost more than $2,000 a month?

2.1% of rented homes in Wilkes-Barre have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 14.0% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Wilkes-Barre higher than in Luzerne County?

In Wilkes-Barre, median gross rent is not measurably different from Luzerne County ($1,004).

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

It is lower than 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 Wilkes-Barre city, Pennsylvania (place:85152, 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.