Photo: Michael Boyter · CC BY 2.0North Lakes has higher unemployment (7.1%) than 83% of U.S. towns
Measured by household income, North Lakes is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns. Jobs and income earn North Lakes C+; getting around on foot earns it C. 16% of workers work from home, against 10% across Alaska.
Census ACS 2020–24, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
North Lakes’ Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, North Lakes is better than 41% of U.S. towns, #23 of 41 in Alaska. Household income holds North Lakes’ grade up ($101,679, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 14% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, North Lakes could be anywhere from C to B+.
Commuting from North Lakes: about 30 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Lakes workers work from home, vs 10% across Alaska. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,680 commuters (the 16% 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.
In North Lakes, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Lakes is more walkable than 30% of U.S. towns, #28 of 41 in Alaska. Both inputs place North Lakes near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,372 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). 2.5% of North Lakes households have no vehicle (Alaska 9.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of North Lakes’ commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 7,000 to 14,000, North Lakes ranks 1,956th of 2,878 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,564 | College AK | 11,924 | $84K | 6.5% | 4.4% | — | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,798 | Tanaina AK | 9,646 | $106K | 8.6% | 4.9% | — | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,809 | Ketchikan AK | 7,939 | $85K | 11.2% | 4.0% | — | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,954 | Oneida NY | 10,009 | $62K | 14.3% | 3.5% | 19% | C+ |
| 1,955 | Chehalis WA | 7,764 | $74K | 15.0% | 4.0% | 17% | C+ |
| 1,956 | North Lakes AK | 10,223 | $102K | 7.3% | 7.1% | — | C+ |
| 1,957 | Dingman Township PA | 13,467 | $101K | 6.0% | 7.1% | 5% | C+ |
| 1,958 | New London WI | 7,726 | $61K | 21.0% | 2.8% | 16% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,878 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 North Lakes, 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 North Lakes: questions
What is the median household income in North Lakes?
$101,679 (±$10,694) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $92,788 across Alaska and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Lakes?
7.3%, against 10.1% across Alaska and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Lakes?
30 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Alaska and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Is North Lakes walkable?
North Lakes is more walkable than 30% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 5.6 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Lakes without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Lakes, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Lakes
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.