Photo: Otherbeach · CC BY 3.0Households in Wayne Township earn more than those in 93% of U.S. towns
Only 5% work in Wayne Township; the top destination outside it is Chicago (15%, 28 miles). The poverty rate is 4.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois. Wayne Township grades A for jobs and income and B for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Wayne Township stands out on work
Wayne Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Wayne Township is Chicago, 28 miles away as the crow flies. 15% of working residents (5,145) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Wayne Township draws workers from far and wide
The 15,609 jobs in Wayne Township are filled from a wide area. Wayne Township’s own residents hold 11% and the ten next-biggest home towns 29%; the other 60% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Wayne Township empties out on a workday
About 44,000 people are in Wayne Township on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than the 64,000 who live here: 33,000 head out to work and 14,000 come in. Day and night ↓
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.
Wayne Township’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Wayne Township is better than 92% of U.S. towns, #96 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Wayne Township’s grade up (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.5%, 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, Wayne Township could be anywhere from A to A+.
How far Wayne Township goes to work
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.
Where Wayne Township goes to work
Where Wayne Township clocks in
15% of workers
5% 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.
How a workday changes Wayne Township
On a workday 33,369 residents head out to work, 1,699 work right here, and 13,910 people come in from elsewhere.
About 44,000 people are in Wayne Township on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
0.45 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.
Inside Wayne Township’s 15,609 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wayne Township, 2013 → 2023: 11,682 → 15,609. 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 Wayne Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Wayne Township: about 29 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wayne Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 28,476 commuters (the 17% 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 Wayne Township, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Wayne Township is more walkable than 58% of U.S. towns, #487 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Wayne Township 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 34,363 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 0.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 44% 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). 2.3% of Wayne Township households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Wayne Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 45,000 to 86,000, Wayne Township ranks 67th of 687 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | New Lenox Township IL | 45,290 | $133K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | New Trier Township IL | 56,118 | $216K | 2.9% | 4.0% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Vernon Township IL | 71,353 | $146K | 6.3% | 2.4% | 15% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 65 | Livermore CA | 83,457 | $161K | 4.9% | 3.6% | 23% | A |
| 66 | Strongsville OH | 45,629 | $103K | 5.3% | 2.7% | 11% | A |
| 67 | Wayne Township IL | 63,935 | $137K | 4.3% | 4.5% | 5% | A |
| 68 | Bothell WA | 52,199 | $140K | 4.8% | 3.9% | 9% | A |
| 69 | Bowie MD | 58,383 | $142K | 3.8% | 4.7% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 687 | Pahrump NV | 47,347 | $62K | 13.7% | 8.5% | 28% | 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 Wayne Township, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Next door is work for 14% of Wayne Township
The biggest share goes to Carol Stream (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Wayne Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Township | – | A | B | 29 min | $136,513 |
| Bloomingdale Township | under 3% | B+ | A− | 26 min | $99,020 |
| Hanover Township | under 3% | A− | A− | 30 min | $99,697 |
| Carol Stream | 4% | A | A− | 28 min | $102,309 |
| Winfield Township | under 3% | B | A− | 27 min | $103,183 |
| St. Charles Township | under 3% | A | A− | 28 min | $128,204 |
| Bartlett | 3% | A+ | B | 30 min | $133,240 |
| Elgin | 4% | B | A | 28 min | $90,282 |
| West Chicago | 3% | B | B+ | 26 min | $99,927 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Wayne Township’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 Wayne Township: questions
What is the median household income in Wayne Township?
$136,513 (±$5,007) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wayne Township?
4.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wayne Township?
29 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 17% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wayne Township work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (15%, 28 mi), Schaumburg (5%, 8 mi), Carol Stream (4%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Wayne Township walkable?
Wayne Township is more walkable than 58% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 7.2 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Wayne Township 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 Wayne Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wayne Township
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.