Photo: Magnolia677 · CC BY 4.0Port LaBelle has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Jobs & income C: better than 32% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #485 of 638 in Florida.
Walkability D: more walkable than 12% of U.S. towns · #617 of 638 in Florida.
Household incomes here are lower than in 50% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 35 minutes each way (Florida 28, U.S. 26). Only 1% work in Port LaBelle; the top destination outside it is LaBelle (17%, 5 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Port LaBelle, in brief
Fewer jobs are based in Port LaBelle than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Port LaBelle fell from 768 in 2013 to 298 in 2023, −61%. 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 ↓
Port LaBelle is a place people come home to
There are 298 jobs based in Port LaBelle, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Port LaBelle has about 6,000 people in it, 25% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Port LaBelle and LaBelle trade workers both ways
LaBelle is the top workplace for Port LaBelle residents (17%) and also where the most people who work in Port LaBelle come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Port LaBelle workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 35 minutes each way, against 28 across Florida. Over a year that’s about 268 hours of commuting, 54 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
35% 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 Port LaBelle’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Port LaBelle is better than 32% of U.S. towns, #485 of 638 in Florida. Household income holds Port LaBelle’s grade up ($75,231, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 13% of U.S. towns).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Port LaBelle could be anywhere from D− to A−.
Port LaBelle makes things: 60% of its jobs are in goods
298 jobs are based in Port LaBelle. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Port LaBelle’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Port LaBelle, 2013 → 2023: 768 → 298. 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.
Port LaBelle quiets down on a workday
On a workday 2,227 residents head out to work, 20 work right here, and 278 people come in from elsewhere.
About 6,000 people are in Port LaBelle on a workday afternoon, 25% fewer than live here.
0.13 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.
17% of working residents work in LaBelle
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Port LaBelle clocks in
17% of workers
7% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
About 35 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 11.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Port LaBelle workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,699 commuters (the 5% who work from home are left out). Across Florida: 83% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Half of Port LaBelle commutes less than 32 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 35% 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.
Most trips from Port LaBelle start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Port LaBelle is more walkable than 12% of U.S. towns, #617 of 638 in Florida. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.6% across Florida.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,909 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). 3.6% of Port LaBelle households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Port LaBelle’s commuters take a bus or train.
Port LaBelle is 2,287th of 3,069 U.S. towns of 5,500 to 10,700 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Port LaBelle, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 43 | Southwest Ranches FL | 7,773 | $161K | 3.8% | 1.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 182 | Neptune Beach FL | 7,020 | $119K | 3.1% | 2.1% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 341 | Westlake FL | 9,042 | $132K | 3.2% | 2.8% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,285 | Lansing Township MI | 8,060 | $48K | 19.1% | 5.0% | 5% | C |
| 2,286 | Allegany NY | 7,484 | $73K | 15.0% | 4.2% | 16% | C |
| 2,287 | Port LaBelle FL | 7,923 | $75K | 11.9% | 4.4% | 1% | C |
| 2,288 | Senatobia MS | 8,473 | $54K | 26.4% | 3.0% | 19% | C |
| 2,289 | Bernalillo NM | 9,159 | $64K | 15.9% | 6.9% | 12% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 3,069 | 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.
17% of Port LaBelle works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to LaBelle (17%). Darker towns draw more of Port LaBelle’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Port LaBelle workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Port LaBelle | – | C | D | 35 min | $75,231 |
| LaBelle | 17% | C− | B+ | 35 min | $53,309 |
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 Port LaBelle: questions
What is the median household income in Port LaBelle?
$75,231 (±$33,110) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Port LaBelle?
11.9%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Port LaBelle?
35 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Port LaBelle work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are LaBelle (17%, 5 mi), Fort Myers (7%, 29 mi), Clewiston (2%, 27 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Port LaBelle walkable?
Port LaBelle is more walkable than 12% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.8 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Port LaBelle without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Port LaBelle, from the people who make the trip.
More of Port LaBelle
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.