County outline
Where York County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 99.3% of York County’s measured area and water for 0.7%. Its combined area converts to 2,358.8 square kilometers or approximately 582,863 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 904.352 | 2,342.261 | 578,785.3 |
| Water | 6.372 | 16.503 | 4,078.1 |
| Total | 910.724 | 2,358.764 | 582,863.4 |
How York County compares
By original Census land area, York County ranks #13 of 67 in Pennsylvania and #833 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.384 times the Pennsylvania county-equivalent median of 653.3 square miles. It accounts for 2% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Pennsylvania ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of York County
The Census Bureau estimates that 473,197 people lived in York County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #157 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #8 of 67 in Pennsylvania. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 456,434, the population has grown by 16,763 (+3.7%), compared with +0.4% for Pennsylvania as a whole.
With 904.4 square miles of land, that is 523 people per square mile (202 per km²), placing York County #328 nationally for density and #11 in Pennsylvania. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Pennsylvania median is 137. Put another way, there are about 1.2 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 456,725 | 459,306 | 461,464 | 466,068 | 469,986 | 473,197 |
| Change | — | +2,581 | +2,158 | +4,604 | +3,918 | +3,211 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in York County
York County is divided into 72 municipalities and townships. In Pennsylvania, county subdivisions are local governments, and together they cover all of the county’s land and residents.
The most populous is York city, with 45,342 residents (9.6% of the county). The largest by land is Chanceford township, at 48.5 mi², or 5.4% of the county’s land. Among those with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, West Manheim township grew fastest since then (+22.9%).
| County subdivision | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| York cityCounty seat | 45,342 | +1.2% | 5.292 | 0.6% |
| York townshipCounty seat | 31,479 | +5.8% | 25.3 | 2.8% |
| Springettsbury township | 27,617 | +2.2% | 16.4 | 1.8% |
| Dover township | 24,395 | +9.1% | 41.5 | 4.6% |
| Manchester township | 20,061 | +2.8% | 15.8 | 1.8% |
| West Manchester township | 19,365 | +0.8% | 19.9 | 2.2% |
| Penn township | 18,523 | +6.2% | 13 | 1.4% |
| Windsor township | 18,134 | +1.5% | 27.3 | 3% |
| Fairview township | 18,015 | +3.2% | 35.6 | 3.9% |
| Hanover borough | 16,684 | +1.4% | 3.696 | 0.4% |
| Newberry township | 16,377 | +4.5% | 30.4 | 3.4% |
| Spring Garden township | 13,617 | −0.3% | 6.729 | 0.7% |
| West Manheim township | 11,139 | +22.9% | 19.4 | 2.1% |
| North Codorus township | 9,486 | +3.6% | 32.2 | 3.6% |
| Jackson township | 9,301 | +6.3% | 22.6 | 2.5% |
Show the other 57 subdivisions
| Name | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conewago township | 9,140 | +7.1% | 24.4 |
| East Manchester township | 8,703 | +4.4% | 16.9 |
| Lower Windsor township | 7,845 | +4.3% | 25 |
| Carroll township | 7,416 | +8% | 15 |
| Shrewsbury township | 7,158 | +7.5% | 29.1 |
| Red Lion borough | 6,523 | +0.1% | 1.313 |
| Springfield township | 6,186 | +2.5% | 26.4 |
| Chanceford township | 6,025 | +1.3% | 48.5 |
| Hellam township | 6,007 | +1.1% | 28.2 |
| Hopewell township | 5,600 | +6.3% | 26.8 |
| Franklin township | 5,182 | +2.9% | 19.2 |
| New Freedom borough | 5,116 | +4.9% | 2.081 |
| West York borough | 5,110 | −0.1% | 0.525 |
| Peach Bottom township | 5,108 | +2.7% | 29.2 |
| Warrington township | 4,681 | +3% | 35.3 |
| Dallastown borough | 4,198 | −0.1% | 0.785 |
| Paradise township | 4,096 | +3.2% | 20.2 |
| Codorus township | 4,014 | +2.9% | 33.5 |
| Shrewsbury borough | 4,014 | +4.4% | 1.808 |
| Manheim township | 3,555 | +2.7% | 21.5 |
| Lower Chanceford township | 3,117 | +2.9% | 41.5 |
| Heidelberg township | 3,086 | +1.9% | 14 |
| Fawn township | 3,075 | +2.1% | 27.1 |
| Manchester borough | 2,821 | +0.2% | 0.773 |
| Monaghan township | 2,817 | +5.3% | 12.9 |
| North Hopewell township | 2,805 | +2.9% | 18.7 |
| Hallam borough | 2,798 | +0.8% | 0.666 |
| Washington township | 2,651 | +2.6% | 28 |
| Dillsburg borough | 2,635 | +0.5% | 0.807 |
| East Hopewell township | 2,555 | +5.3% | 20.6 |
| Spring Grove borough | 2,520 | +6.3% | 0.783 |
| Wrightsville borough | 2,259 | +0.3% | 0.655 |
| North York borough | 2,248 | +2.6% | 0.305 |
| Stewartstown borough | 2,225 | +3.8% | 0.843 |
| Glen Rock borough | 2,129 | +0.7% | 0.801 |
| Dover borough | 1,959 | +0.4% | 0.543 |
| Jacobus borough | 1,838 | +0.1% | 0.931 |
| Loganville borough | 1,442 | +1.8% | 1 |
| Mount Wolf borough | 1,422 | +4.6% | 0.524 |
| Windsor borough | 1,420 | +4.6% | 0.548 |
| Yoe borough | 1,058 | +0.2% | 0.224 |
| East Prospect borough | 961 | +3% | 0.32 |
| Goldsboro borough | 931 | +0.1% | 0.451 |
| New Salem borough | 822 | +0.6% | 0.473 |
| Delta borough | 713 | +1% | 0.262 |
| York Haven borough | 687 | +0.4% | 0.298 |
| Jefferson borough | 657 | 0% | 0.606 |
| Winterstown borough | 607 | +0.3% | 2.414 |
| Franklintown borough | 559 | +8.3% | 0.256 |
| Cross Roads borough | 534 | +3.5% | 1.818 |
| Felton borough | 505 | +3.5% | 0.63 |
| Fawn Grove borough | 473 | −0.2% | 1.645 |
| Seven Valleys borough | 472 | 0% | 1.089 |
| Lewisberry borough | 378 | +0.3% | 0.151 |
| Wellsville borough | 305 | +0.3% | 0.144 |
| Railroad borough | 265 | +4.7% | 0.638 |
| Yorkana borough | 236 | +0.4% | 0.171 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each subdivision inside York County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
York County is a central county of the York-Hanover, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. York County is the area’s only county equivalent, so the metro area has the same 904.4 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #292 of 393 metropolitan areas, and #117 by population. It belongs to the Harrisburg-York-Lebanon, PA Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
47 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in York County; 42 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
1701117019170551707017301173021730917311173131731417315173161731717318173191732117322173231732717329173311733917342173451734717349173521735517356173601736117362173631736417365173661736817370173711737217401174021740317404174061740717408
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Lighter codes have less than half of their land in this county. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering York County
York County shares a land border with 7 county equivalents, including 3 in Maryland. It has more land than 6 of them. The largest neighbor is Lancaster County (943.9 mi²) and the smallest is Harford County (437.1 mi²). Together with its neighbors, York County forms a block of 4,920.3 mi² of land, of which it holds 18.4%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. York | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster County | 943.9 | about the same | Compare |
| Baltimore CountyMaryland | 598.4 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
| Cumberland County | 545.5 | 1.7× smaller | Compare |
| Dauphin County | 524.9 | 1.7× smaller | Compare |
| Adams County | 518.6 | 1.7× smaller | Compare |
| Carroll CountyMaryland | 447.6 | 2× smaller | Compare |
| Harford CountyMaryland | 437.1 | 2.1× smaller | Compare |
How big is York County compared with U.S. states?
York County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.1 times as much. Pennsylvania’s county land could hold about 49 areas the size of York County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 30.1 miles (48.4 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about York County?
York County has more land than 2,389 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places York County at #928 nationally by total area, 95 places farther from the top than its land rank. Other county equivalents gain more area when their water measurements are included.
Its water share is 0.7%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 0.5 percentage points lower. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside York County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #832 | Wise County, Texas | 904.4 | Compare |
| #833 | York County, Pennsylvania | 904.4 | This county |
| #834 | Bryan County, Oklahoma | 904.3 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 39.921751, -76.728889. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 2,342,261,959 m²; AWATER: 16,503,414 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is York County?
York County, Pennsylvania has 904.4 square miles (2,342.3 km²) of land and 6.372 square miles of water, for a total area of 910.7 square miles. It ranks #833 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is York County the largest county in Pennsylvania?
No. York County ranks #13 of 67 in Pennsylvania by land area. The largest is Lycoming County, with 1,228.9 square miles of land.
What counties border York County?
York County shares a land border with Lancaster County, Adams County, Cumberland County, Harford County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, Carroll County, Maryland, and Dauphin County.
What is the population of York County?
The Census Bureau estimates York County had 473,197 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #157 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 523 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of York County?
The county seat of York County is York.
What cities and towns are in York County?
York County has 72 county subdivisions (cities, towns and townships). The most populous five are York city, York township, Springettsbury township, Dover township, and Manchester township.
Is York County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the York-Hanover, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in York County?
47 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in York County, and 42 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does York County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.1 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in York County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 578,785 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 582,863 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.