Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0Jobs, income and commuting in Kensington, CT
Only 7% stay in Kensington for work; outside it, Hartford is the main destination (12%, 11 miles). The average commute takes 20 minutes each way, against 27 across Connecticut and 26 nationally. Kensington has 4,027 jobs, and 4,595 of its residents work somewhere.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Kensington apart
Kensington trades workers with the towns around it
Kensington has about as many jobs (4,027) as working residents (4,595), but they are mostly different people: 4,270 residents leave for work each day while 3,702 people come in. Only 8% of the jobs in Kensington are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Kensington are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 27 across Connecticut. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Connecticut worker. Time on the road ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Kensington than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Kensington fell from 5,379 in 2013 to 4,027 in 2023, −25%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
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.
In and out of Kensington on a workday
On a workday 4,270 residents head out to work, 325 work right here, and 3,702 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.88 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Kensington’s commute takes about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Kensington workers work from home, vs 16% across Connecticut. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,951 commuters (the 14% who work from home are left out). Across Connecticut: 82% drive alone, 4% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
What Kensington’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Kensington, 2013 → 2023: 5,379 → 4,027. 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 Kensington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where Kensington’s working residents head each day
Where Kensington clocks in
12% of workers
8% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Kensington
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.
Kensington and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to New Britain (8%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Kensington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kensington | – | — | — | 20 min | $109,447 |
| New Britain | 8% | C | A | 22 min | $58,613 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Kensington’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 Kensington: questions
What is the median household income in Kensington?
$109,447 (±$15,182) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,781 across Connecticut and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Kensington?
3.2%, against 10.0% across Connecticut and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Kensington?
20 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Connecticut and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Kensington work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Hartford (12%, 11 mi), Berlin (12%, 2 mi), New Britain (8%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Kensington without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Kensington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Kensington
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.