Create a pros/cons list like a cable package ad! It will help you figure out what factors you personally want to prioritize and more easily compare different factors.
See ex below:
school 1 school 2
good funding yes yes
supportive environment yes ?
lively place to live no yes
My impression is that they differ in the structure and resources they directly provide for their graduate students (hands-off vs. hands-on philosophy).
Over five years living in Pittsburgh and being part of the university, people are very accepting here. The city itself is very socially liberal and the program is definitely lgbtq friendly, as there are organizations/clubs specifically supporting the lgbtq community at the university.
Let me know if you have any specific Qs.
Anyone applying to UPitt and thinking about using your doctorate for a non-academic career pursuit (which is a whole other convo), the university seems to be "woke" about it - thought I'd share a newsletter I got as Psych staff: https://www.as.pitt.edu/snapshot/1218/wide-angle
I say wait to hear from them now that you've submitted your apps.
The main benefit I got from emailing them individually (before submitting) was finding out several of my top choices were not taking students -I'm looking at you, Northwestern!-, but now that they are going to be reviewing apps they will contact you soon.