Postal Codes

19606 ZIP Code

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ZIP code 19606 covers Reading, Pennsylvania, with a population of about 36,097 and a median household income of $81,872.

Population
36,0971,354 per square mile
Median age
40.72 points above the US average
Median household income
$81,8721.1× the Pennsylvania median
Poverty rate
9.8%2.6 points below the US average
Typical home value
$306,021up 35.3% in five years
Median rent
$1,2821.1× the Pennsylvania median
Degree or higher
29.5%5.5 points below the US average
Homeownership
77.7%12.7 points above the US average
Time zone
Eastern UTC-05:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
541

Where 19606 is

Reading, Pennsylvania — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population36,097
Median age40.7
Family households69%
Born outside the US5.6%
Speaks a language other than English at home13.6%
White (non-Hispanic)72.4%
Black (non-Hispanic)4.7%
Asian (non-Hispanic)1.5%
Hispanic or Latino18.1%
Veterans6.6%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$81,872
Income per person$39,916
Poverty rate9.8%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance15.1%

Household income distribution

Under $10k3.9%
$10–15k1.2%
$15–20k1.9%
$20–25k3.6%
$25–30k2.1%
$30–35k4.2%
$35–40k4.2%
$40–45k3.2%
$45–50k3.4%
$50–60k6.7%
$60–75k11.7%
$75–100k13.5%
$100–125k10.0%
$125–150k9.9%
$150–200k10.0%
$200k or more10.4%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed17,930
Mean adjusted gross income$75,381
Returns declaring $200,000 or more5%
Returns, under $25k25.7%
Returns, $25k–$50k22.9%
Returns, $50k–$75k17.0%
Returns, $75k–$100k10.8%
Returns, $100k–$200k18.7%
Returns, $200k or more5.0%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$229,400
Median gross rent$1,282
Rent as a share of household income29.5%
Owner-occupied77.7%
Vacant homes4.5%
Median year built1974

What the homes are

Detached house61.4%
Attached house21.4%
2 to 4 units6%
5 to 19 units4.8%
20 or more units3.3%
Mobile home2.9%
Boat, RV or van0.1%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$306,021as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 3.2%
Typical home value, 5 yearsup 35.3%
Typical home value, 10 yearsup 96.9%
Typical asking rent$1,547as of 2026-07
Typical home value since 2000
200020132026$306,021$104,255

$104,255 in 2000 to $306,021 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate5.9%
Bachelor's degree or higher29.5%
High school diploma or higher92.8%
Works from home11.7%
Drives to work alone77.6%
Takes public transport0.8%
Commutes 45 minutes or more13.1%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Colorectal screening66.7% 2.4 pts above the national average of 64.3%
Visited a dentist66.4% 5.1 pts above the national average of 61.3%
Mammography use77.9% 2 pts above the national average of 75.9%
Sleeps under 7 hours40.1% 3.7 pts above the national average of 36.4%
All natural teeth lost12.5% 0.5 pts below the national average of 13%
Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments541
People employed10,295
Annual payroll$502,297,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 22.5% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingVery Low to Relatively Low across the 15 census tracts this ZIP code covers
Expected annual loss26 out of 100
Community resilience77.9 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Winter weather88.2Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Landslide82.5Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hurricane74.4Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Strong wind70.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Drought58.3Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning56.7Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave56.5Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake49.3Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave48.8Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado45.5Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire39.8Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding32.8Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Ice storm29.9Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hail26.5Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Avalanche18.2Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
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Compared with Pennsylvania and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPPennsylvaniaUnited States
Median household income$81,872$76,081$78,538
Income per person$39,916$43,104$43,289
Poverty rate9.8%11.8%12.4%
Median home value$229,400$240,500$303,400
Median gross rent$1,282$1,162$1,348
Homeownership77.7%69.3%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher29.5%34.5%35%
Unemployment rate5.9%5.2%5.2%
Works from home11.7%13.8%13.5%
Born outside the US5.6%7.4%13.9%
Median age40.740.938.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationREADING SPAATZ FLD, PA US8.5 km away
Rain in a year45 in

Average high and low by month

January38.6°F / 23°F2.97 in rain
February41.9°F / 24.4°F2.61 in rain
March51°F / 31.9°F3.53 in rain
April63.4°F / 41.7°F3.35 in rain
May73.5°F / 51.5°F3.51 in rain
June82°F / 61.2°F4.77 in rain
July86.5°F / 65.8°F4.77 in rain
August84.4°F / 64.1°F4.49 in rain
September77.1°F / 56.6°F4.88 in rain
October65.4°F / 45°F3.8 in rain
November53.8°F / 35.4°F3.02 in rain
December43.4°F / 28°F3.51 in rain
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarket4% of this ZIP code's area
Far from a supermarket23% of this ZIP code's area
No vehicle and far from a supermarket15% of this ZIP code's area
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

This ZIP code is served by 4 school districts, so the address decides which one, not the ZIP code.

Exeter Township School District60.7% of this ZIP code's land area
Antietam School District19.5% of this ZIP code's land area
Oley Valley School District17.3% of this ZIP code's land area
Reading School District2.5% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability31more vulnerable than 31% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status35more vulnerable than 35% of US census tracts
Household characteristics46more vulnerable than 46% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status28more vulnerable than 28% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport32more vulnerable than 32% of US census tracts
Walkability7.2 out of 20Below average
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

19604 Reading, PA3.8 km away
19602 Reading, PA3.8 km away
19601 Reading, PA5.3 km away
19611 Reading, PA6 km away
19535 Limekiln, PA6.3 km away
19605 Reading, PA7.7 km away
19560 Temple, PA7.9 km away
19610 Reading, PA8.7 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Berks County100% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneEastern (UTC-05:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area26.65 sq mi
Water area0.24 sq mi
Population density1,354 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude40.3351, -75.8750

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

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