Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 3.0Households in Black Forest earn more than those in 94% of U.S. towns
29% of workers have no commute at all, where Colorado as a whole has 21%. Poverty touches 5.0% of residents, where Colorado as a whole has 9.4%. The two grades for Black Forest are B+ for jobs and income and C for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Black Forest
More than half of Black Forest works in Colorado Springs
3,207 working residents, 51%, have their main job in Colorado Springs, 14 miles away across the town line. That’s 13 times as many as work in Black Forest itself. The commute map ↓
Black Forest is a place people come home to
There are 1,836 jobs based in Black Forest, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Black Forest has about 11,000 people in it, 28% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Black Forest works from home
29% of Black Forest workers work from home, against 21% across Colorado. Time on the road ↓
Black Forest workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 25 across Colorado. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 38 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Jobs & income in Black Forest: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Black Forest is better than 71% of U.S. towns, #74 of 159 in Colorado. Household income holds Black Forest’s grade up ($145,460, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 39% 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, Black Forest could be anywhere from B to A−.
51% of working residents work in Colorado Springs
Where Black Forest clocks in
51% of workers
7% of workers
3% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
The daily flow of workers through Black Forest
On a workday 6,002 residents head out to work, 245 work right here, and 1,591 people come in from elsewhere.
About 11,000 people are in Black Forest on a workday afternoon, 28% fewer than live here.
0.29 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
How long Black Forest spends getting to work: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Black Forest workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,861 commuters (the 29% who work from home are left out). Across Colorado: 82% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
What Black Forest’s employers do
1,836 jobs are based in Black Forest.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Black Forest, 2013 → 2023: 2,178 → 1,836. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Black Forest’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Black Forest goes to work
About 16% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Few in Black Forest walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Black Forest is more walkable than 30% of U.S. towns, #143 of 159 in Colorado. Both inputs place Black Forest 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 6,811 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 1.1% of Black Forest households have no vehicle (Colorado 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Black Forest’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Black Forest ranks: 928th of 2,109 U.S. towns of 11,000 to 21,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Timnath CO | 11,600 | $178K | 4.4% | 0.6% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 96 | Greenwood Village CO | 15,323 | $149K | 3.1% | 3.3% | 13% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 201 | Superior CO | 13,637 | $159K | 3.2% | 3.7% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 926 | Moncks Corner SC | 20,612 | $92K | 8.3% | 3.6% | 11% | B+ |
| 927 | Milton NY | 19,546 | $100K | 5.8% | 4.9% | 8% | B+ |
| 928 | Black Forest CO | 15,738 | $145K | 5.0% | 4.8% | 4% | B+ |
| 929 | Norcross GA | 19,086 | $75K | 15.2% | 2.2% | 6% | B+ |
| 930 | Upper Chichester Township PA | 16,901 | $92K | 5.3% | 7.3% | 6% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,109 | 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 Black Forest, the top three, the last and three more from Colorado.
The towns next door employ 51% of Black Forest
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Black Forest workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Forest | – | B+ | C | 30 min | $145,460 |
| Colorado Springs | 51% | B | A− | 23 min | $84,818 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Colorado Springs. Darker towns draw more of Black Forest’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. 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 Black Forest: questions
What is the median household income in Black Forest?
$145,460 (±$14,041) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,470 across Colorado and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Black Forest?
5.0%, against 9.4% across Colorado and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Black Forest?
30 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Colorado and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Black Forest work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Colorado Springs (51%, 14 mi), Denver (7%, 49 mi), Aurora (3%, 45 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Black Forest walkable?
Black Forest is more walkable than 30% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.2 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Black Forest without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Black Forest, from the people who make the trip.
More of Black Forest
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. 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.