Photo: IvoShandor · CC BY 2.5Unemployment in Amboy (8.3%) is higher than in 89% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Amboy is better than 19% of U.S. towns (C−); for walkability it is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (B). 1% of workers have no commute at all, against 16% across Illinois. About one in ten work in Amboy itself; outside it, Dixon draws the most (12%, 11 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Amboy apart
Amboy makes and builds things
47% of the jobs based in Amboy are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Amboy residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 27%. The jobs ↓
Few Amboy workers work from home
Only 1% of workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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 drives the Jobs & income grade in Amboy
Household income holds Amboy’s grade up ($68,258, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Amboy could be anywhere from D to B−.
Amboy makes things: 47% of its jobs are in goods
740 jobs are based in Amboy.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Amboy, 2013 → 2023: 637 → 740. 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 Amboy’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Amboy: about 28 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Amboy workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,232 commuters (the 1% who work from home are left out). Across Illinois: 78% drive alone, 7% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The distance from Amboy to work
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.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
How many people are in Amboy by day
On a workday 910 residents head out to work, 116 work right here, and 624 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,900 people are in Amboy on a workday afternoon, 13% fewer than live here.
0.72 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.
The towns that employ Amboy’s residents
Where Amboy clocks in
12% of workers
5% 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.
For most of Amboy, work means a drive
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,247 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). 4.7% of Amboy households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Amboy’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Amboy ranks: 4,245th of 5,641 U.S. towns of 1,500 to 3,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 32 | Prestbury IL | 2,045 | $165K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 0% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 34 | Port Barrington IL | 1,584 | $150K | 2.7% | 2.9% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,243 | Ronald Township MI | 1,899 | $63K | 11.9% | 2.6% | 1% | C− |
| 4,244 | Mercer WI | 1,649 | $63K | 9.5% | 0.6% | 31% | C− |
| 4,245 | Amboy IL | 2,206 | $68K | 13.3% | 8.3% | 11% | C− |
| 4,246 | Mountain Lake Park MD | 2,101 | $61K | 15.2% | 5.7% | 4% | C− |
| 4,247 | Hines OR | 1,610 | $78K | 14.9% | 0.4% | 12% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,641 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Amboy, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Around Amboy: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Amboy Township (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Amboy workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amboy | – | C− | B | 28 min | $68,258 |
| Amboy Township | 4% | C− | B− | 28 min | $68,286 |
| Marion Township | under 2% | — | — | 19 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Marion Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Amboy’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 Amboy: questions
What is the median household income in Amboy?
$68,258 (±$8,853) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Amboy?
13.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Amboy?
28 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 1% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Amboy work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Dixon (12%, 11 mi), Chicago (5%, 86 mi), Sterling (4%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Amboy walkable?
Amboy is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 7.3 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Amboy without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Amboy, from the people who make the trip.
More of Amboy
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.