Household incomes in South Bradenton trail those of 90% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 31.0 in Miami. The poverty rate is 16.8%, next to 12.6% for Florida as a whole. Jobs and income earn South Bradenton C; getting around on foot earns it A.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in South Bradenton
South Bradenton draws workers from far and wide
The 7,104 jobs in South Bradenton are filled from a wide area. South Bradenton’s own residents hold 6% and the ten next-biggest home towns 25%; the other 69% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Few South Bradenton workers work from home
Only 3% of workers work from home, against 16% across Florida. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, 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 South Bradenton’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, South Bradenton is better than 30% of U.S. towns, #506 of 638 in Florida. Job access by car holds South Bradenton’s grade up (ahead of 72% of U.S. towns); household income pulls it down ($48,315, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, South Bradenton could be anywhere from C− to B−.
14% of working residents work in Bradenton
Where South Bradenton clocks in
14% of workers
6% 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.
About 25 minutes each way, quicker than most of Florida
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of South Bradenton workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 12,023 commuters (the 3% 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.
How a workday changes South Bradenton
On a workday 10,069 residents head out to work, 433 work right here, and 6,671 people come in from elsewhere.
About 23,000 people are in South Bradenton on a workday afternoon, 13% fewer than live here.
0.68 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 2024, primary jobs.
What South Bradenton’s employers do
7,104 jobs are based in South Bradenton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in South Bradenton, 2014 → 2024: 6,927 → 7,104. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs South Bradenton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far it is to work from South Bradenton
About 23% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
In South Bradenton, walking beats the bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, South Bradenton is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns, #52 of 638 in Florida. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 6.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, above 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 12,417 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 36% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 80% 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). 12.5% of South Bradenton households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of South Bradenton’s commuters take a bus or train.
South Bradenton places 1,327th of 1,576 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 18,000 to 35,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 50 | Pinecrest FL | 18,635 | $206K | 4.3% | 3.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 90 | Palm Valley FL | 19,796 | $117K | 4.2% | 1.2% | 13% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 108 | Jacksonville Beach FL | 23,615 | $121K | 4.8% | 1.8% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,325 | Eastpointe MI | 33,814 | $62K | 17.5% | 12.9% | 2% | C |
| 1,326 | Vincennes Township IN | 21,431 | $59K | 16.3% | 4.0% | 49% | C |
| 1,327 | South Bradenton FL | 25,990 | $48K | 16.8% | 4.9% | 4% | C |
| 1,328 | Horn Lake MS | 26,741 | $53K | 19.0% | 5.8% | 6% | C |
| 1,329 | Carlsbad NM | 32,524 | $72K | 13.8% | 5.2% | 58% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 1,576 | Nogales AZ | 19,495 | $43K | 28.0% | 15.7% | 35% | 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 Bradenton, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
Bordering towns draw 14% of South Bradenton’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | South Bradenton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Bradenton | – | C | A | 25 min | $48,315 |
| Bradenton | 14% | C | A− | 25 min | $60,822 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Bradenton. Darker towns draw more of South Bradenton’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 2024, 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 Bradenton: questions
What is the median household income in South Bradenton?
$48,315 (±$4,920) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in South Bradenton?
16.8%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from South Bradenton?
25 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in South Bradenton work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Bradenton (14%, 2 mi), Sarasota (6%, 9 mi), Tampa (3%, 36 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is South Bradenton walkable?
South Bradenton is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 14.1 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around South Bradenton without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. 36% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from South Bradenton, from the people who make the trip.
More of South Bradenton
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.