Genoa has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.3 for each
About one in ten work in Genoa itself; outside it, Elgin draws the most (9%, 19 miles). 830 jobs are based in Genoa for 2,506 working residents. Genoa grades B for jobs and income and C for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Genoa stands out on work
Genoa workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 33 minutes each way, against 28 across Illinois. Over a year that’s about 253 hours of commuting, 38 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Genoa empties out on a workday
About 3,900 people are in Genoa on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than the 5,500 who live here: 2,300 head out to work and 610 come in. Day and night ↓
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.
Genoa’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Genoa is better than 61% of U.S. towns, #406 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Genoa’s grade up (ahead of 71% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (11.9%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on household income and unemployment.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Genoa could be anywhere from C to A.
About 33 minutes each way for Genoa’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Genoa workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,724 commuters (the 12% 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 workday shuffle in and out of Genoa
On a workday 2,285 residents head out to work, 221 work right here, and 609 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,900 people are in Genoa on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Where people from Genoa work
Where Genoa clocks in
9% 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.
The kinds of work in Genoa
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Genoa, 2013 → 2023: 1,053 → 830. 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 Genoa’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Genoa, by distance
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.
For most of Genoa, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Genoa is more walkable than 31% of U.S. towns, #651 of 768 in Illinois. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 10.8% across Illinois.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,107 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). 1.4% of Genoa households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Genoa’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Genoa is 1,499th among 3,502 U.S. towns of 3,900 to 7,500
| # | 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 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | South Barrington IL | 5,071 | $222K | 1.0% | 2.0% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 37 | Northfield IL | 5,632 | $162K | 3.2% | 2.2% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 78 | Grandwood Park IL | 5,262 | $127K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,497 | Wheatfield Township IN | 4,588 | $80K | 7.5% | 2.3% | 7% | B |
| 1,498 | Jaffrey NH | 5,633 | $92K | 3.8% | 5.1% | 29% | B |
| 1,499 | Genoa IL | 5,547 | $82K | 11.9% | 3.6% | 9% | B |
| 1,500 | Walton KY | 5,868 | $78K | 13.0% | 3.2% | 7% | B |
| 1,501 | Petoskey MI | 5,772 | $74K | 9.0% | 1.6% | 32% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,502 | 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 Genoa, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Next door to Genoa
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Genoa workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genoa | – | B | C | 33 min | $82,128 |
| Genoa Township | under 2% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| Kingston Township | under 2% | B+ | C− | 35 min | $103,286 |
Same-state neighbors only. Genoa Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Genoa’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 Genoa: questions
What is the median household income in Genoa?
$82,128 (±$23,022) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Genoa?
11.9%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Genoa?
33 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Genoa work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Elgin (9%, 19 mi), Sycamore (9%, 7 mi), DeKalb (6%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Genoa walkable?
Genoa is more walkable than 31% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 7.1 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Genoa without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Genoa, from the people who make the trip.
More of Genoa
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.