Photo: Dennisyerger84 · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Lansing (9.8%) is higher than in 94% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago. For jobs and income Lansing is better than 43% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (A). Only 7% work in Lansing; the top destination outside it is Chicago (28%, 20 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Lansing, in a few figures
Lansing and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Lansing residents (28%) and also where the most people who work in Lansing come from (16% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Many of the people who work in Lansing live in another state
Hammond, IN (5%), Munster, IN (2%) and St. John, IN (2%) are among the top places Lansing’s workers come from. Counting only the top ten home towns, 13% of the jobs here are held by people from out of state. The commute map ↓
Lansing 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 ↓
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.
Jobs & income in Lansing: the grade in detail
Job access by car holds Lansing’s grade up (ahead of 92% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lansing could be anywhere from C to B.
The towns that employ Lansing’s residents
Where Lansing clocks in
28% 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.
A commute of about 33 minutes in Lansing
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lansing workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 11,963 commuters (the 9% 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.
Lansing quiets down on a workday
On a workday 10,916 residents head out to work, 852 work right here, and 6,290 people come in from elsewhere.
About 23,000 people are in Lansing on a workday afternoon, 16% fewer than live here.
0.61 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.
What work there is in Lansing: 7,142 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lansing, 2013 → 2023: 8,245 → 7,142. 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 Lansing’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Lansing
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.
Lansing is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 13,125 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 35% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 10% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 51% 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). 6.5% of Lansing households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of Lansing’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 20,000 to 38,000, Lansing ranks 1,044th of 1,409 on jobs and income
| # | 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 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 9 | West Deerfield Township IL | 32,111 | $205K | 2.7% | 2.7% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Geneva IL | 21,138 | $144K | 3.8% | 1.8% | 13% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 21 | New Lenox IL | 28,893 | $141K | 1.5% | 2.9% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,042 | Summit Township MI | 22,705 | $66K | 7.7% | 7.3% | 10% | C+ |
| 1,043 | Buenaventura Lakes FL | 32,682 | $69K | 13.3% | 6.3% | 2% | C+ |
| 1,044 | Lansing IL | 28,068 | $76K | 14.0% | 9.8% | 7% | C+ |
| 1,045 | Union Township IN | 25,751 | $64K | 12.3% | 3.5% | 41% | C+ |
| 1,046 | Hamilton Township NJ | 28,845 | $79K | 8.8% | 10.8% | 10% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,409 | Barstow CA | 24,804 | $53K | 23.1% | 11.9% | 17% | 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 Lansing, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Bordering towns draw 10% of Lansing’s workers
The biggest share goes to South Holland (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lansing workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lansing | – | C+ | A | 33 min | $75,569 |
| Calumet City | 2% | C− | A+ | 34 min | $55,369 |
| Lynwood | under 2% | B | B | 50 min | $85,237 |
| South Holland | 3% | B− | A | 34 min | $85,280 |
| Thornton Township | under 2% | C | A+ | 32 min | $58,534 |
| Bloom Township | under 2% | C+ | A | 33 min | $73,530 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Lansing’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 Lansing: questions
What is the median household income in Lansing?
$75,569 (±$6,995) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lansing?
14.0%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lansing?
33 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lansing work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (28%, 20 mi), South Holland (3%, 4 mi), Munster (3%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lansing walkable?
Lansing is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.5 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lansing without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 10% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lansing, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lansing
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.