Photo: DanTD · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Hernando (10.6%) is higher than in 95% of U.S. towns
Jobs & income D−: better than 4% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #628 of 638 in Florida.
Walkability C−: more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns · #591 of 638 in Florida.
Household incomes here are lower than in 94% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 32 minutes each way (Florida 28, U.S. 26). Only 3% work in Hernando; the top destination outside it is Inverness (14%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Hernando
A longer commute than the towns next door
Hernando averages 32 minutes each way, more than any bordering town (21 to 29 minutes). Next door ↓
A big share show a job far from home
34% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
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.
What’s behind Hernando’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Hernando is better than 4% of U.S. towns, #628 of 638 in Florida. Job access by car holds Hernando’s grade up (ahead of 21% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (10.6%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Hernando could be anywhere from D− to D.
Half of Hernando commutes less than 23 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 34% 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.
Hernando quiets down on a workday
On a workday 2,797 residents head out to work, 80 work right here, and 999 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,500 people are in Hernando on a workday afternoon, 19% fewer than live here.
0.38 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.
14% of working residents work in Inverness
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Hernando clocks in
14% of workers
9% of workers
2% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
What the 1,079 jobs in Hernando are
1,079 jobs are based in Hernando. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Hernando’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Hernando, 2013 → 2023: 902 → 1,079. 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.
About 32 minutes each way, longer than most of Florida
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Hernando workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,160 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Florida: 83% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Most trips from Hernando start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Hernando is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns, #591 of 638 in Florida. Both inputs place Hernando 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 2,541 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 0.5 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 50% 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). 4.0% of Hernando households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Hernando’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Hernando compares with U.S. towns of 6,500 to 12,600
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Hernando, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Southwest Ranches FL | 7,773 | $161K | 3.8% | 1.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 183 | Neptune Beach FL | 7,020 | $119K | 3.1% | 2.1% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 344 | Westlake FL | 9,042 | $132K | 3.2% | 2.8% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,842 | Cordele GA | 9,652 | $34K | 29.0% | 7.5% | 30% | D− |
| 2,843 | Ripley TN | 7,499 | $37K | 30.7% | 8.2% | 27% | D− |
| 2,844 | Hernando FL | 9,299 | $43K | 21.1% | 10.6% | 3% | D− |
| 2,845 | Wynne AR | 7,884 | $43K | 24.7% | 10.3% | 30% | D− |
| 2,846 | Palatka FL | 10,872 | $32K | 37.3% | 9.3% | 22% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,867 | 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.
Hernando and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Citrus Hills (2%). Darker towns draw more of Hernando’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Hernando workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hernando | – | D− | C− | 32 min | $43,076 |
| Citrus Springs | under 2% | C | B− | 29 min | $68,011 |
| Citrus Hills | 2% | B+ | C | 21 min | $85,837 |
| Pine Ridge | 2% | C | B− | 24 min | $71,014 |
| Inverness Highlands North | under 2% | B | A | 28 min | $63,281 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 Hernando: questions
What is the median household income in Hernando?
$43,076 (±$8,638) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Hernando?
21.1%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Hernando?
32 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Hernando work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Inverness (14%, 8 mi), Ocala (9%, 21 mi), Lecanto (2%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Hernando walkable?
Hernando is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.4 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Hernando without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Hernando, from the people who make the trip.
More of Hernando
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.