Photo: RadioKAOS · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Badger (7.1%) is higher than in 83% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute from Badger lasts 23 minutes (Alaska 19, U.S. 26). For jobs and income Badger is better than 48% of U.S. towns (B−); for walkability it is more walkable than 10% of U.S. towns (D). Household incomes here are higher than in 75% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Badger
The poverty rate holds Badger’s grade up (4.2%, U.S. 12.5%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 16% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Badger could be anywhere from C to A−.
The daily trip from Badger: about 23 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Badger workers work from home, vs 10% across Alaska. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,852 commuters (the 5% who work from home are left out). Across Alaska: 72% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The commute in Badger is mostly behind the wheel
How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 0.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 9.9% across Alaska, on an EPA index of 4.1.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,343 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 1.3% of Badger households have no vehicle (Alaska 9.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Badger’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 13,000 to 25,000, Badger ranks 1,256th of 1,915 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,254 | New Ulm MN | 13,863 | $64K | 9.2% | 3.0% | 56% | B− |
| 1,255 | North Auburn CA | 13,480 | $71K | 11.1% | 4.3% | 13% | B− |
| 1,256 | Badger AK | 18,677 | $97K | 4.2% | 7.1% | — | B− |
| 1,257 | East Rancho Dominguez CA | 14,603 | $73K | 15.1% | 6.6% | 1% | B− |
| 1,258 | Socastee SC | 23,796 | $62K | 12.6% | 3.5% | 6% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,324 | Knik-Fairview AK | 19,972 | $96K | 9.2% | 4.3% | — | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,915 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Badger, the top three, the last and three more from Alaska.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Badger: questions
What is the median household income in Badger?
$97,183 (±$11,161) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $92,788 across Alaska and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Badger?
4.2%, against 10.1% across Alaska and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Badger?
23 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Alaska and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Is Badger walkable?
Badger is more walkable than 10% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 4.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Badger without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Badger, from the people who make the trip.
More of Badger
Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.