At 9.2%, unemployment in West Peoria is higher than in 92% of U.S. towns
Only 2% work in West Peoria itself; outside it, Peoria draws the most (43%, 4 miles). The two grades for West Peoria are C+ for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. 7% of workers work from home; Illinois has 16%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: West Peoria in brief
Commutes from West Peoria 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 ↓
43% of West Peoria works in Peoria
819 working residents, 43%, have their main job in Peoria, 4 miles away across the town line. That’s 22 times as many as work in West Peoria itself. The commute map ↓
Fewer jobs are based in West Peoria than ten years ago
Jobs counted in West Peoria fell from 848 in 2014 to 570 in 2024, −33%. 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 ↓
Most West Peoria residents work close to home
63% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
West Peoria is a place people come home to
There are 570 jobs based in West Peoria, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday West Peoria has about 2,900 people in it, 31% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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.
Income, poverty and work: West Peoria’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, West Peoria is better than 44% of U.S. towns, #542 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds West Peoria’s grade up (ahead of 80% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Peoria could be anywhere from C− to A.
About 16 minutes each way for West Peoria’s commuters
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 Peoria workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,795 commuters (the 7% 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.
Where people from West Peoria work
Where West Peoria clocks in
Lines 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.
The kinds of work in West Peoria
570 jobs are based in West Peoria.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Peoria, 2014 → 2024: 848 → 570. 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 Peoria’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from West Peoria
About 23% 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.
The workday shuffle in and out of West Peoria
On a workday 1,845 residents head out to work, 40 work right here, and 530 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,900 people are in West Peoria on a workday afternoon, 31% fewer than live here.
0.30 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 2024, primary jobs.
The commute in West Peoria is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, West Peoria is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns, #428 of 768 in Illinois. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.0% 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 1,922 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 92% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 53% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.7 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). 3.8% of West Peoria households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of West Peoria’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, West Peoria is 2,441st of 4,195 U.S. towns of 2,900 to 5,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | South Barrington IL | 5,071 | $222K | 1.0% | 2.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Deer Park IL | 3,647 | $174K | 1.3% | 2.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,439 | Copperopolis CA | 4,285 | $108K | 7.4% | 5.6% | 5% | C+ |
| 2,440 | Holly Lake Ranch TX | 2,956 | $70K | 7.0% | 11.4% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,441 | West Peoria IL | 4,187 | $66K | 8.4% | 9.2% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,442 | Leroy Township MI | 3,881 | $85K | 12.8% | 7.1% | 6% | C+ |
| 2,443 | Fremont MI | 4,599 | $57K | 8.7% | 2.8% | 24% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,195 | 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 Peoria, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
The towns next door employ 45% of West Peoria
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Peoria workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Peoria | – | C+ | B+ | 16 min | $66,098 |
| Peoria City Township | under 3% | C− | A | 18 min | $52,321 |
| Peoria | 43% | C | A | 18 min | $59,410 |
| Limestone Township | 2% | B+ | B | 21 min | $71,380 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Peoria. Darker towns draw more of West Peoria’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 Peoria: questions
What is the median household income in West Peoria?
$66,098 (±$17,321) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Peoria?
8.4%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Peoria?
16 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Peoria work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Peoria (43%, 4 mi), East Peoria (4%, 5 mi), Morton (4%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is West Peoria walkable?
West Peoria is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 13.5 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Peoria without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 53% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Peoria, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Peoria
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.