West Galena Township has some of the lowest unemployment in the country, with hardly anyone out of work
West Galena Township grades B+ for jobs and income and A for walkability. About one in three work in West Galena Township; the top destination outside it is Galena (40%, 2 miles). The average commute takes 16 minutes each way; Illinois averages 28, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in West Galena Township
Commutes from West Galena Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 16 minutes, against 28 across Illinois. That’s about 92 hours a year less on the road than the typical Illinois worker. Time on the road ↓
West Galena Township and Galena trade workers both ways
Galena is the top workplace for West Galena Township residents (40%) and also where the most people who work in West Galena Township come from (25% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A lot of West Galena Township workers cross into Iowa
21% of West Galena Township workers work outside Illinois, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Dubuque (10%) and Davenport (2%) are among the top workplaces. 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.
Inside West Galena Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, West Galena Township is better than 68% of U.S. towns, #355 of 768 in Illinois. Unemployment holds West Galena Township’s grade up (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($65,679, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Galena Township could be anywhere from B− to A−.
Each way, about 16 minutes from West Galena Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Galena Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,453 commuters (the 11% 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.
Commuting out of West Galena Township: the destinations
Where West Galena Township clocks in
40% of workers
10% of workers
3% 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.
West Galena Township on a workday afternoon
On a workday 864 residents head out to work, 400 work right here, and 1,311 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,600 people are in West Galena Township on a workday afternoon, 14% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.35 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 1,711 jobs based in West Galena Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Galena Township, 2014 → 2024: 1,644 → 1,711. 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 West Galena Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from West Galena Township
About 30% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: West Galena Township
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, West Galena Township is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns, #100 of 768 in Illinois. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 15.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 10.8% across Illinois, on an EPA index of 8.9.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,632 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). 13.0% of West Galena Township households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of West Galena Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, West Galena Township is 1,333rd among 4,562 U.S. towns of 2,200 to 4,200
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 20 | Deer Park IL | 3,647 | $174K | 1.3% | 2.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,331 | Volga SD | 2,458 | $79K | 6.1% | 1.4% | 9% | B+ |
| 1,332 | East Bernard TX | 2,256 | $98K | 5.2% | 5.9% | 11% | B+ |
| 1,333 | West Galena Township IL | 3,143 | $66K | 6.3% | 0.0% | 32% | B+ |
| 1,334 | Bowdoin ME | 3,254 | $91K | 11.0% | 0.9% | 3% | B+ |
| 1,335 | Burns Township MI | 3,268 | $84K | 8.8% | 2.0% | 6% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,562 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 19% | 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 Galena Township, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
West Galena Township and its neighbors: 42% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Galena Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Galena Township | – | B+ | A | 16 min | $65,679 |
| East Galena Township | 1% | A− | A− | 20 min | $103,008 |
| Galena | 40% | B | A | 15 min | $58,689 |
| Rawlins Township | 1% | — | — | — | — |
| Menominee Township | under 2% | B | B− | 17 min | $90,444 |
Same-state neighbors only. Rawlins Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Galena. Darker towns draw more of West Galena 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 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 West Galena Township: questions
What is the median household income in West Galena Township?
$65,679 (±$15,484) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Galena Township?
6.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Galena Township?
16 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Galena Township work?
32% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Galena (40%, 2 mi), Dubuque (10%, 14 mi), Chicago (3%, 148 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is West Galena Township walkable?
West Galena Township is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 8.9 out of 20, and 16% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Galena Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 13% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Galena Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Galena Township
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.