Photo: Farragutful · CC BY-SA 4.0At 6.3%, unemployment in Rock Island is higher than in 77% of U.S. towns
The two grades for Rock Island are C for jobs and income and A− for walkability. Measured by household income, Rock Island is behind 76% of U.S. towns. About one in four work in Rock Island itself; outside it, Davenport draws the most (17%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Rock Island, in brief
A lot of Rock Island workers cross into Iowa
28% of Rock Island workers work outside Illinois, most of them in Iowa, the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
Many of the people who work in Rock Island live in another state
Davenport, IA (12%) and Bettendorf, IA (5%) are among the top places Rock Island’s workers come from. Counting only the top ten home towns, 17% of the jobs here are held by people from out of state. The commute map ↓
Most Rock Island residents work close to home
70% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
Commutes from Rock Island are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 28 across Illinois. That’s about 69 hours a year less on the road than the typical Illinois worker. Time on the road ↓
Rock Island and Davenport trade workers both ways
Davenport is the top workplace for Rock Island residents (17%) and also where the most people who work in Rock Island come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, 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 Rock Island: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Rock Island is better than 28% of U.S. towns, #646 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Rock Island’s grade up (ahead of 78% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (21.0%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Rock Island could be anywhere from C− to C+.
Where the trip to work from Rock Island ends
Where Rock Island clocks in
17% of workers
12% 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.
Rock Island’s commute, mile by mile
About 22% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 19 minutes to work from Rock Island
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rock Island workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 14,436 commuters (the 10% 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.
How many people are in Rock Island by day
On a workday 11,094 residents head out to work, 3,388 work right here, and 14,525 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 (1.24 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The 17,913 jobs based in Rock Island
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rock Island, 2014 → 2024: 17,434 → 17,913. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Rock Island’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Good to walk, short on transit: Rock Island
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Rock Island is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns, #242 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Rock Island 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 16,092 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). 12.1% of Rock Island households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Rock Island’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Rock Island is 1,081st of 1,239 U.S. towns of 25,000 to 49,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 6 | West Deerfield Township IL | 32,111 | $205K | 2.7% | 2.7% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | New Lenox IL | 28,893 | $141K | 1.5% | 2.9% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 28 | Bartlett IL | 40,855 | $133K | 4.2% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,079 | DeKalb IL | 40,467 | $46K | 24.9% | 10.2% | 23% | C |
| 1,080 | Hallandale Beach FL | 42,698 | $52K | 19.6% | 7.5% | 8% | C |
| 1,081 | Rock Island IL | 36,225 | $59K | 21.0% | 6.3% | 23% | C |
| 1,082 | Ottumwa IA | 25,319 | $61K | 17.2% | 4.6% | 48% | C |
| 1,083 | New Bern NC | 34,724 | $61K | 17.3% | 4.6% | 41% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 1,239 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 25% | 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 Rock Island, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Work next door: 16% of Rock Island’s workers
The biggest share goes to Moline (12%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Rock Island workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Island | – | C | A− | 19 min | $59,041 |
| Milan | 4% | B | A− | 22 min | $62,597 |
| Moline | 12% | C+ | A− | 18 min | $67,701 |
| Rock Island Arsenal | under 2% | — | — | — | — |
| Moline Township | under 2% | C+ | A− | 18 min | $62,396 |
| Rock Island Township | under 2% | C− | A | 18 min | $41,155 |
| South Rock Island Township | under 2% | C+ | B+ | 20 min | $69,711 |
| South Moline Township | under 2% | C+ | B+ | 18 min | $67,829 |
Same-state neighbors only. Rock Island Arsenal: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Rock Island’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 2024, 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 Rock Island: questions
What is the median household income in Rock Island?
$59,041 (±$5,320) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rock Island?
21.0%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rock Island?
19 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rock Island work?
23% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Davenport (17%, 6 mi), Moline (12%, 5 mi), East Moline (5%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Rock Island walkable?
Rock Island is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Rock Island without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Rock Island, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rock Island
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.