Fewer people are out of work in Lafayette Township (0.5%) than in 97% of U.S. towns
About one in ten stay in Lafayette Township for work; outside it, Mattoon is the main destination (30%, 4 miles). Lafayette Township grades B for jobs and income and C− for walkability. For 5% of workers, the job is at home, against 16% across Illinois.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Lafayette Township
Lafayette Township is where the jobs are
Lafayette Township has 4,637 jobs, 2.4 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 7,400 people are in town, 58% more than the 4,700 who live here. Day and night ↓
Lafayette Township and Mattoon trade workers both ways
Mattoon is the top workplace for Lafayette Township residents (30%) and also where the most people who work in Lafayette Township come from (19% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Lafayette Township has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Lafayette Township went from 2,919 in 2013 to 4,637 in 2023, +59%. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Lafayette Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 22 minutes, against 28 across Illinois. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Illinois worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Inside Lafayette Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lafayette Township is better than 56% of U.S. towns, #459 of 768 in Illinois. Unemployment holds Lafayette Township’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (13.4%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lafayette Township could be anywhere from C+ to B+.
Lafayette Township fills up on a workday
On a workday 1,716 residents head out to work, 223 work right here, and 4,414 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,400 people are in Lafayette Township on a workday afternoon, 58% more than live here.
2.4 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
Where Lafayette Township’s workers come from
Where Lafayette Township clocks in
30% of workers
9% of workers
5% 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.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in Lafayette Township
4,637 jobs are based in Lafayette Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lafayette Township, 2013 → 2023: 2,919 → 4,637. 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 Lafayette Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Getting to work from Lafayette Township takes about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lafayette Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,963 commuters (the 5% 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.
Lafayette Township’s commute, mile by mile
About 21% 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.
Getting around Lafayette Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lafayette Township is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns, #719 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Lafayette Township 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 2,075 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). 9.4% of Lafayette Township households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Lafayette Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Lafayette Township is 1,762nd among 3,798 U.S. towns of 3,300 to 6,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | South Barrington IL | 5,071 | $222K | 1.0% | 2.0% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Deer Park IL | 3,647 | $174K | 1.3% | 2.3% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,760 | Surf City NC | 5,142 | $81K | 5.5% | 2.8% | 12% | B |
| 1,761 | Northfield OH | 3,617 | $71K | 12.4% | 4.5% | 6% | B |
| 1,762 | Lafayette Township IL | 4,678 | $69K | 13.4% | 0.5% | 12% | B |
| 1,763 | Fabius Township MI | 3,325 | $96K | 8.8% | 5.0% | 2% | B |
| 1,764 | Holly MI | 5,906 | $64K | 8.5% | 4.2% | 6% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,798 | 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 Lafayette Township, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Lafayette Township and its neighbors: 33% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lafayette Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lafayette Township | – | B | C− | 22 min | $69,125 |
| Humboldt Township | under 2% | B− | C+ | 21 min | $85,745 |
| Mattoon Township | 3% | — | — | 18 min | — |
| Mattoon | 30% | D | B | 18 min | $51,597 |
| Pleasant Grove Township | under 2% | B− | C− | 22 min | $76,613 |
| Charleston Township | under 2% | — | — | 16 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Mattoon Township and Charleston Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Mattoon. Darker towns draw more of Lafayette Township’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 Lafayette Township: questions
What is the median household income in Lafayette Township?
$69,125 (±$13,187) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lafayette Township?
13.4%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lafayette Township?
22 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lafayette Township work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Mattoon (30%, 4 mi), Charleston (9%, 6 mi), Effingham (5%, 28 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lafayette Township walkable?
Lafayette Township is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.8 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lafayette Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lafayette Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lafayette Township
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.