Photo: Legimet · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Robbins trail those of 96% of U.S. towns
28.7% of residents are in poverty, next to 11.8% for Illinois as a whole. For jobs and income Robbins is better than 18% of U.S. towns (C−); for walkability it is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns (A). Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 4.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Robbins in brief
Robbins and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Robbins residents (30%) and also where the most people who work in Robbins come from (20% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Robbins is a place people come home to
There are 332 jobs based in Robbins, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Robbins has about 3,200 people in it, 30% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Home offices are common in Robbins
28% of Robbins workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Robbins than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Robbins fell from 486 in 2013 to 332 in 2023, −32%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
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.
Where Robbins’ Jobs & income grade comes from
Job access by car holds Robbins’ grade up (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (17.0%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Robbins could be anywhere from C− to C.
30% of working residents work in Chicago
Where Robbins clocks in
30% of workers
2% 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.
Robbins on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,711 residents head out to work, 16 work right here, and 316 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,200 people are in Robbins on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
0.19 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.
Robbins’ commute takes about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Robbins workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,189 commuters (the 28% 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.
In Robbins, services account for most jobs
332 jobs are based in Robbins.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Robbins, 2013 → 2023: 486 → 332. 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 Robbins’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Robbins
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.
In Robbins, walking beats the bus
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 5.6% 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 1,653 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 89% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 83% 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). 15.8% of Robbins households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of Robbins’ commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Robbins is 3,304th among 3,938 U.S. towns of 3,200 to 6,200
| # | 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 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,302 | Jefferson Township IN | 3,303 | $59K | 11.4% | 5.6% | 12% | C− |
| 3,303 | Fort Fairfield ME | 3,285 | $71K | 10.3% | 9.1% | 12% | C− |
| 3,304 | Robbins IL | 4,588 | $41K | 28.7% | 17.0% | 1% | C− |
| 3,305 | Pontotoc MS | 6,156 | $46K | 17.4% | 5.4% | 28% | C− |
| 3,306 | Paw Paw MI | 3,386 | $42K | 21.9% | 5.7% | 10% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,938 | 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 Robbins, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Work in the towns next to Robbins
The biggest share goes to Crestwood (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Robbins workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robbins | – | C− | A | 29 min | $40,668 |
| Crestwood | 4% | B− | A | 33 min | $75,752 |
| Blue Island | 2% | C | A+ | 29 min | $59,489 |
| Midlothian | under 2% | B | A | 29 min | $70,000 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Robbins’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 Robbins: questions
What is the median household income in Robbins?
$40,668 (±$19,309) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Robbins?
28.7%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Robbins?
29 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 28% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Robbins work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (30%, 14 mi), Crestwood (4%, 2 mi), Blue Island (2%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Robbins walkable?
Robbins is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 14.4 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Robbins without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 16% of households have no car. 89% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Robbins, from the people who make the trip.
More of Robbins
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.