Philadelphia/Compare
Fishtown vs Old City
Fishtown and Old City are two official neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Fishtown is the calmer Part I map (26 vs 11). Old City wins the errand count. Fishtown has the lower ACS median ($1,847).
Data vintage. ACS 2024 5-year · PPD Oct 2025 – Sep 2026 · OSM Sep 2026 · updated Sep 2026
Scores
Fit axes among official Philadelphia neighborhoods.
| Axis | Fishtown | Old City |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 26 | 11 |
| Schools | 17 | 13 |
| Walk | 26 | 78 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 100 |
| Vibe | 20 | 92 |
| Median rent | $1,847 | $2,191 |
| Median home | $408,523 | $491,745 |
| Population | 15,438 | 5,135 |
| Commute to Center City | 14 min | 10 min |
| Commute to University City | 24 min | 22 min |
| Commute to Navy Yard | 26 min | 20 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Fishtown | Old City |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 35% | 70% |
| Median age | 35.5 | 34.6 |
| Median income | $116K | $105K |
| Part I per 1k | 69.3 | 101.8 |
| Groceries / 800m | 11 | 15 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 31 | 61 |
| Parks / 800m | 18 | 41 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for Philadelphia city. Up 53% since 2014. Fishtown is 32% above the 2024 city median. Old City is 57% above the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Fishtown if the quieter map matters more than the scene and the rent gap is the point. Safety is 26 vs 11. ACS median rent is $1,847 vs $2,191. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick Old City if you want the cafes and the night and you want the errands on foot. Vibe is 92 vs 20. Walk is 78 vs 26. Read both pages before you decide.
Fishtown
Frankford Avenue is the night. The El is the spine. The official line is Fishtown–Lower Kensington — Kensington as a search is not this whole map, and not a second polygon here.
$1,847 median rent · safety 26 · walk 26
Old City
Cobblestones, the Mall, First Friday. You live next to a national park. Walk maxes out. Part I is padded by people who do not sleep here.
$2,191 median rent · safety 11 · walk 78
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Fishtown or Old City?
Fishtown is the lower ACS median: $1,847 vs $2,191. About 35% rent in Fishtown vs 70% in Old City. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Fishtown more walkable than Old City?
Old City wins the errand count (walk 26 vs 78). Groceries inside 800 meters: 11 vs 15. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Fishtown or Old City?
Fishtown is the calmer Part I read (26 vs 11). Combined rate 69.3 vs 101.8 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Fishtown or Old City?
Fishtown leads the school axis (17 vs 13). Nearby rating is 6.5 / 10 vs 6.4 / 10. Median age 35.5 vs 34.6. Old City has more of the night. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Center City?
14 minutes from Fishtown to Center City, 10 from Old City. Old City is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official neighborhood that is not Fishtown or Old City: Northern Liberties. Second Street, Piazza-era leftovers, and a walk to the El that is not quite Fishtown. Newer than Old City, louder than Fairmount. NoLibs is the search.
Fishtown vs Northern LibertiesOld City vs Northern Liberties
Scores are relative among official Philadelphia neighborhoods with the same editorial weights. Read the method.