Household incomes put West Deerfield Township near the very top of U.S. towns
Measured by household income, West Deerfield Township is among the highest-earning towns in the country. Below the poverty line: 2.7% of residents, against 11.8% across Illinois. The two grades for West Deerfield Township are A+ for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in West Deerfield Township: the gist
West Deerfield Township is where the jobs are
West Deerfield Township has 24,859 jobs, 2.0 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
West Deerfield Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside West Deerfield Township is Chicago, 26 miles away as the crow flies. 27% of working residents (3,353) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Home offices are common in West Deerfield Township
29% of West Deerfield Township workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Most jobs in West Deerfield Township pay over $40,000 a year
78% of the jobs based in West Deerfield Township pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
West Deerfield Township draws workers from far and wide
The 24,859 jobs in West Deerfield Township are filled from a wide area. West Deerfield Township’s own residents hold 5% and the ten next-biggest home towns 29%; the other 66% come from many towns beyond those. 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in West Deerfield Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, West Deerfield Township is among the top U.S. towns, #9 of 768 in Illinois. Household income is its strongest input ($204,915, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns. It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Deerfield Township stays A+.
How a workday changes West Deerfield Township
On a workday 11,473 residents head out to work, 1,144 work right here, and 23,715 people come in from elsewhere.
About 44,000 people are in West Deerfield Township on a workday afternoon, 38% more than live here.
2.0 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
How far West Deerfield 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.
How long West Deerfield Township spends getting to work: 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 West Deerfield Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 10,859 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.
78% of the jobs in West Deerfield Township pay over $3,333 a month
24,859 jobs are based in West Deerfield Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Deerfield Township, 2013 → 2023: 27,510 → 24,859. 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 West Deerfield Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where West Deerfield Township’s workers come from
Where West Deerfield Township clocks in
27% 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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: West Deerfield Township
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, West Deerfield Township is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns, #84 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place West Deerfield 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 15,280 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 49% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, <1% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 81% 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 West Deerfield Township households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 10% of West Deerfield Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
West Deerfield Township places 8th of 1,368 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 22,000 to 43,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 6 | Upper Arlington OH | 35,893 | $155K | 3.3% | 2.0% | 7% | A+ |
| 7 | Hudson OH | 23,085 | $171K | 3.7% | 1.3% | 14% | A+ |
| 8 | West Deerfield Township IL | 32,111 | $205K | 2.7% | 2.7% | 9% | A+ |
| 9 | Colleyville TX | 25,727 | $218K | 2.5% | 3.0% | 4% | A+ |
| 10 | Oakton VA | 36,528 | $161K | 4.6% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | New Lenox IL | 28,893 | $141K | 1.5% | 2.9% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 32 | Bartlett IL | 40,855 | $133K | 4.2% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 42 | Geneva Township IL | 26,220 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.5% | 15% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,368 | 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 West Deerfield Township, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
The towns around West Deerfield Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Deerfield Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Deerfield Township | – | A+ | A | 29 min | $204,915 |
| Vernon Township | under 2% | A+ | A | 28 min | $145,857 |
| Moraine Township | under 2% | A | A+ | 28 min | $153,798 |
| Northfield Township | under 2% | A | A+ | 27 min | $136,617 |
| Shields Township | under 2% | B+ | A+ | 21 min | $112,865 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of West Deerfield 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 West Deerfield Township: questions
What is the median household income in West Deerfield Township?
$204,915 (±$8,235) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Deerfield Township?
2.7%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Deerfield Township?
29 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Deerfield Township work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (27%, 26 mi), Deerfield (6%, 2 mi), Northbrook (5%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Deerfield Township walkable?
West Deerfield Township is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.3 out of 20, and 13% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Deerfield Township without a car?
10% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. <1% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Deerfield Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Deerfield 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.