Photo: Crosbiesmith · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Palos Park are higher than in 89% of U.S. towns
29% of workers have no commute at all (Illinois 16%). The poverty rate is 8.5%; Illinois has 11.8%. For jobs and income Palos Park is better than 82% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 68% of U.S. towns (B+).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Palos Park: the gist
A lot of Palos Park works from home
29% of Palos Park workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Palos Park and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Palos Park residents (25%) and also where the most people who work in Palos Park come from (15% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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.
The four measures behind Palos Park’s grade
Job access by car holds Palos Park’s grade up (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.7%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Palos Park could be anywhere from B to A+.
The daily trip from Palos Park: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Palos Park workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,458 commuters (the 29% 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.
25% of working residents work in Chicago
Where Palos Park clocks in
25% of workers
4% 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.
Who leaves Palos Park for work, and who comes in
On a workday 2,019 residents head out to work, 38 work right here, and 1,269 people come in from elsewhere.
About 4,100 people are in Palos Park on a workday afternoon, 16% fewer than live here.
0.64 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 the 1,307 jobs in Palos Park are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Palos Park, 2013 → 2023: 1,063 → 1,307. 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 Palos Park’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from Palos Park
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.
The commute in Palos Park is mostly behind the wheel
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,048 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 12% 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 2.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 70% 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). 1.6% of Palos Park households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Palos Park’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 3,753 U.S. towns of 3,400 to 6,500, Palos Park comes 708th on jobs and income
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | South Barrington IL | 5,071 | $222K | 1.0% | 2.0% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Deer Park IL | 3,647 | $174K | 1.3% | 2.3% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 706 | Swatara Township PA | 5,073 | $80K | 3.3% | 2.2% | 2% | A− |
| 707 | East Pasadena CA | 5,479 | $109K | 9.3% | 4.0% | 4% | A− |
| 708 | Palos Park IL | 4,805 | $122K | 8.5% | 4.7% | 2% | A− |
| 709 | Osnaburg Township OH | 5,498 | $72K | 6.0% | 1.2% | 3% | A− |
| 710 | Manchester-by-the-Sea MA | 5,475 | $206K | 2.1% | 8.4% | 11% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,753 | 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 Palos Park, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Bordering towns draw 10% of Palos Park’s workers
The biggest share goes to Palos Heights (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Palos Park workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palos Park | – | A− | B+ | 30 min | $121,696 |
| Lemont | under 2% | A | A | 35 min | $123,370 |
| Palos Heights | 4% | A | A | 30 min | $108,740 |
| Orland Park | 4% | A− | A | 34 min | $98,910 |
| Palos Hills | 2% | A− | A | 35 min | $83,533 |
| Palos Township | under 2% | B+ | A | 33 min | $86,101 |
| Lemont Township | under 2% | A | A | 35 min | $120,984 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Palos Park’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 Palos Park: questions
What is the median household income in Palos Park?
$121,696 (±$15,777) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Palos Park?
8.5%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Palos Park?
30 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Palos Park work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (25%, 14 mi), Palos Heights (4%, 2 mi), Orland Park (4%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Palos Park walkable?
Palos Park is more walkable than 68% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.0 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Palos Park without a car?
2% 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 Palos Park, from the people who make the trip.
More of Palos Park
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.