Photo: Nlpictures · Public domainHousehold incomes in New Lenox are higher than in 94% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago. Poverty touches 1.5% of residents, next to 11.8% for Illinois as a whole. For jobs and income New Lenox is better than 98% of U.S. towns (A+); for walkability it is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns (A−).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
New Lenox at work: what stands out
Jobs in New Lenox have more than doubled in ten years
Jobs based in New Lenox went from 5,933 in 2013 to 12,156 in 2023, +105%. The jobs ↓
New Lenox’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside New Lenox is Chicago, 27 miles away as the crow flies. 15% of working residents (2,095) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
New Lenox 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Where New Lenox’s Jobs & income grade comes from
The poverty rate is its strongest input; unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (2.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, New Lenox stays A+.
Inside New Lenox’s 12,156 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in New Lenox, 2013 → 2023: 5,933 → 12,156. 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 New Lenox’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where in the region New Lenox works
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.
Commuting from New Lenox: about 33 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of New Lenox workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 11,952 commuters (the 15% 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.
Who works in New Lenox, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 13,073 residents head out to work, 1,370 work right here, and 10,786 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 (0.84 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.
15% of working residents work in Chicago
Where New Lenox clocks in
15% of workers
6% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: New Lenox
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 14,103 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 9% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 57% 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). 2.0% of New Lenox households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of New Lenox’s commuters take a bus or train.
New Lenox next to U.S. towns of 20,000 to 39,000: 21st of 1,467 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Scotch Plains Township NJ | 25,437 | $184K | 2.5% | 3.2% | 7% | A+ |
| 20 | Short Pump VA | 29,026 | $139K | 3.6% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| 21 | New Lenox IL | 28,893 | $141K | 1.5% | 2.9% | 9% | A+ |
| 22 | Wildwood MO | 34,955 | $161K | 2.2% | 2.3% | 4% | A+ |
| 23 | Westfield NJ | 32,595 | $233K | 1.8% | 3.6% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 42 | Geneva Township IL | 26,220 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.5% | 15% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,467 | 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 New Lenox, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Around New Lenox: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Joliet (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | New Lenox workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Lenox | – | A+ | A− | 33 min | $140,865 |
| Joliet | 6% | B | B+ | 29 min | $92,201 |
| Ingalls Park | under 2% | C | A | 26 min | $57,917 |
| Mokena | 3% | A | A− | 31 min | $123,889 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of New Lenox’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 New Lenox: questions
What is the median household income in New Lenox?
$140,865 (±$6,429) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in New Lenox?
1.5%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from New Lenox?
33 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in New Lenox work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (15%, 27 mi), Joliet (6%, 9 mi), Mokena (3%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is New Lenox walkable?
New Lenox is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.1 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around New Lenox without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from New Lenox, from the people who make the trip.
More of New Lenox
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.