Photo: Excel23 · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Watertown are lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
0% of workers work from home, where Florida as a whole has 16%. 42.4% of residents are in poverty, where Florida as a whole has 12.6%. The two grades for Watertown are D for jobs and income and B for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Watertown: the figures worth knowing
Commutes from Watertown are quick
The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 28 across Florida. That’s about 77 hours a year less on the road than the typical Florida worker. Time on the road ↓
Few Watertown workers work from home
Only 0% of workers work from home, against 16% across Florida. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Watertown and Lake City trade workers both ways
Lake City is the top workplace for Watertown residents (25%) and also where the most people who work in Watertown come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A big share show a job far from home
38% 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.
How Watertown earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty and job access, Watertown is better than 5% of U.S. towns, #624 of 638 in Florida. Job access by car holds Watertown’s grade up (ahead of 34% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
Unemployment (22.0%) is left out: Watertown’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, Watertown could be anywhere from D− to D.
About 18 minutes to work from Watertown
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Watertown workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 593 commuters (the 0% 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.
25% of working residents work in Lake City
Where Watertown clocks in
25% of workers
12% of workers
6% 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.
How far it is to work from Watertown
About 38% 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.
Watertown on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,134 residents head out to work, 28 work right here, and 908 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 (0.81 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.
Factories, building and farms: 30% of the jobs in Watertown
936 jobs are based in Watertown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Watertown, 2013 → 2023: 1,121 → 936. 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 Watertown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Most of Watertown commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Watertown is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns, #419 of 638 in Florida. Both inputs place Watertown 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 593 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). 19.0% of Watertown households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Watertown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Where Watertown sits among 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,510 | Rogers City MI | 2,869 | $49K | 17.7% | 6.8% | 28% | D |
| 4,511 | Weston WV | 3,736 | $52K | 23.0% | 16.2% | 17% | D |
| 4,512 | Watertown FL | 3,068 | $41K | 42.4% | 22.0% | 2% | D |
| 4,513 | Collinsville AL | 2,121 | $32K | 26.0% | 2.2% | 8% | D− |
| 4,514 | Guin AL | 2,136 | $51K | 18.3% | 11.2% | 18% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 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 Watertown, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
Bordering towns draw 25% of Watertown’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
The biggest share goes to Lake City. Darker towns draw more of Watertown’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 Watertown: questions
What is the median household income in Watertown?
$41,466 (±$10,822) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Watertown?
42.4%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Watertown?
18 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Watertown work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lake City (25%, 2 mi), Jacksonville (12%, 57 mi), Gainesville (6%, 38 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Watertown walkable?
Watertown is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 7.0 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Watertown without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 19% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Watertown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Watertown
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.