According to The Pew Charitable Trusts’ 2025 State of the City report, poverty and violent crime in Philadelphia are declining, while unemployment rates are falling and educational outcomes are improving, writes Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza for WHYY.
Pew researchers found that the city’s economy is overall stronger than it was during the pandemic five years ago, although some disparities remain.
“What we really found is that Philadelphia is emerging from the pandemic period,” said Katie Martin, project director for Pew’s Philadelphia Research and Policy Initiative, referring to high crime, unemployment, and economic uncertainty. “But there are some new challenges that the city is going to be facing in the years to come.”
These challenges include the loss of federal funding for public service programs, tariffs, and immigration-related federal policies.
In 2023, the poverty rate in Philadelphia was 20.3 percent, down from 26.3 percent in 2013. However, while still lower than a decade ago, Philadelphia’s poverty rate remains higher than those in its peer cities such as Houston, New York, San Antonio, Chicago, and Los Angeles, all of which had poverty rates that are under 20 percent.
Meanwhile, homicides fell to 269 in 2024, less than half the 562 recorded in 2021. However, the number still remains higher than the 2014 total of 248.
Read more about the report and the areas Philly is improving or worsening in WHYY.
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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on PHILADELPHIA Today in April 2025.
