Pennsylvania vs West Virginia

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Pennsylvania

Rank #36

Overall Score

62.1

Category Wins

3/10

West Virginia

Rank #34

Overall Winner

Overall Score

62.5

Category Wins

6/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

1.58%

Property Tax

0.57%

100

Cost of Living

83.2

$6,800

Farm Land $/Acre

$3,200

180 days

Growing Season

180 days

54"

Annual Rainfall

55"

7/10

Soil Quality

5/10

7/10

Safety (Rural)

6/10

7/10

Gun Friendly

9/10

3.8 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.85 hrs

85%

Broadband

72%

West Virginia Edges Out Pennsylvania Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 62.5 vs 62.1, West Virginia comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 6 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: West Virginia offers cheaper farmland at $3,200/acre vs $6,800/acre. West Virginia has lower property taxes (0.57% vs 1.58%). West Virginia is more affordable with a cost of living index of 83.2 vs 100.

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Pennsylvania PA	West Virginia WV
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	3.07%	5.12%
	6.34%	6.55%
	1.58%	0.57%
	100	83.2
Land & Building
	$6,800	$3,200
	Yes (Statewide)	Partial
	Zoning-dependent; increasingly allowed in some municipalities	Varies
Climate & Growing
	5a-7a	5b-7a
	180	180
	54"	55"
	7	5
	3	2
	3	2
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Unrestricted
	3.8	3.85
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	High	Medium
	7	9
	Strong	Moderate
	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing	Herd Share Only
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	421	315
	43%	45%
Demographics & Community
	297	73.6
	18%	51%
	85%	72%
Business
	#33	#23
	$125/yr	$100/yr
	3.9%	4.5%

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