Household incomes in South Beach are higher than in 98% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 4.7%, where Florida as a whole has 12.6%. For jobs and income South Beach is better than 80% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 53% of U.S. towns (B−). Working from home is the commute for 47% of workers (Florida 16%).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from South Beach, in brief
Home offices are common in South Beach
47% of South Beach workers work from home, against 16% across Florida. Time on the road ↓
South Beach has added jobs fast
Jobs based in South Beach went from 455 in 2013 to 767 in 2023, +69%. The jobs ↓
A big share show a job far from home
41% 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 ↓
A lot of South Beach works one town over
27% of working residents work in a town that borders South Beach: Vero Beach (22%), Vero Beach South (3%) and Florida Ridge (2%). Next door ↓
South Beach’s workforce skews older
40% of South Beach’s working residents are 55 or older. That’s about two in five. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Where South Beach’s Jobs & income grade comes from
Household income holds South Beach’s grade up ($193,594, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 30% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
Unemployment (6.3%) is left out: South Beach’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, South Beach could be anywhere from B+ to A.
The trip to work from South Beach: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of South Beach workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 446 commuters (the 47% who work from home are left out). Across Florida: 83% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
767 jobs are based in South Beach.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in South Beach, 2013 → 2023: 455 → 767. 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 South Beach’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far South Beach goes to work
About 41% 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.
Who commutes out of South Beach, and who commutes in
On a workday 1,022 residents head out to work, 86 work right here, and 681 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,700 people are in South Beach on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.69 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.
22% of working residents work in Vero Beach
Where South Beach clocks in
22% of workers
4% 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.
Few in South Beach walk, bike or ride to work
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 837 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). 4.3% of South Beach households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of South Beach’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, South Beach is 809th of 4,771 U.S. towns of 2,100 to 4,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 73 | Geneva FL | 3,441 | $133K | 0.6% | 0.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Windermere FL | 3,344 | $178K | 1.3% | 2.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 105 | Atlantis FL | 2,140 | $117K | 3.6% | 3.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 807 | Pleasant Township OH | 3,378 | $100K | 7.5% | 3.1% | 8% | A− |
| 808 | Goose Creek Village VA | 2,461 | $199K | 13.7% | 3.3% | 1% | A− |
| 809 | South Beach FL | 3,063 | $194K | 4.7% | 6.3% | 8% | A− |
| 810 | Kure Beach NC | 2,145 | $104K | 3.9% | 2.3% | 7% | A− |
| 811 | Robinson Township IN | 3,870 | $98K | 8.2% | 0.6% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,771 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 South Beach, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
South Beach and its neighbors: 27% work next door
The biggest share goes to Vero Beach (22%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | South Beach workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Beach | – | A− | B− | 26 min | $193,594 |
| Vero Beach | 22% | C+ | A | 18 min | $69,758 |
| Florida Ridge | 2% | C+ | C+ | 25 min | $66,625 |
| Vero Beach South | 3% | B− | C | 21 min | $73,420 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of South Beach’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 South Beach: questions
What is the median household income in South Beach?
$193,594 (±$44,107) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in South Beach?
4.7%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from South Beach?
26 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 47% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in South Beach work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Vero Beach (22%, 6 mi), Fort Pierce (4%, 10 mi), Vero Beach South (3%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is South Beach walkable?
South Beach is more walkable than 53% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.2 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around South Beach 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 South Beach, from the people who make the trip.
More of South Beach
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.