Evansville draws more than half of Highland’s working residents
The two grades for Highland are B for jobs and income and C− for walkability. Measured by household income, Highland is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns. Commuters spend 20 minutes getting to work on average, next to 24 for Indiana and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Highland, in brief
More than half of Highland works in Evansville
1,227 working residents, 58%, have their main job in Evansville, 4.3 miles away across the town line. That’s 58 times as many as work in Highland itself. The commute map ↓
Highland is a place people come home to
There are 156 jobs based in Highland, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Highland has about 3,200 people in it, 38% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Most Highland residents work close to home
71% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
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.
Income, poverty and work: Highland’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Highland is better than 63% of U.S. towns, #216 of 593 in Indiana. Household income holds Highland’s grade up ($98,002, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (5.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Highland could be anywhere from C+ to A.
Where Highland goes to work
Where Highland clocks in
58% of workers
7% 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.
Highland by day and by night
On a workday 2,091 residents head out to work, 19 work right here, and 137 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,200 people are in Highland on a workday afternoon, 38% fewer than live here.
0.07 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Highland
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.
Goods, not services: 29% of the jobs in Highland
156 jobs are based in Highland.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Highland, 2013 → 2023: 65 → 156. 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 Highland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Highland spends getting to work: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Highland workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,240 commuters (the 6% who work from home are left out). Across Indiana: 85% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
In Highland, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Highland is more walkable than 16% of U.S. towns, #495 of 593 in Indiana. Both inputs place Highland 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 2,391 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). 1.8% of Highland households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Highland’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Highland ranks: 1,480th of 3,627 U.S. towns of 3,600 to 6,900
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 93 | Milan Township IN | 4,066 | $120K | 1.3% | 0.0% | 9% | A+ |
| 94 | Worth Township IN | 6,688 | $123K | 4.1% | 0.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 139 | Hidden Valley IN | 5,706 | $121K | 1.9% | 1.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,478 | Vevay Township MI | 3,638 | $110K | 6.2% | 10.3% | 3% | B |
| 1,479 | Sugarcreek Township OH | 6,505 | $65K | 11.3% | 1.2% | 9% | B |
| 1,480 | Highland IN | 5,114 | $98K | 8.6% | 5.4% | 1% | B |
| 1,481 | Wrightsboro NC | 6,287 | $78K | 10.7% | 3.2% | 2% | B |
| 1,482 | White Hall AR | 5,532 | $78K | 8.6% | 3.1% | 12% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,627 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Highland, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
The towns next door employ 58% of Highland
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Highland workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highland | – | B | C− | 20 min | $98,002 |
| Evansville | 58% | C | A− | 18 min | $53,387 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Evansville. Darker towns draw more of Highland’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 Highland: questions
What is the median household income in Highland?
$98,002 (±$3,512) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Highland?
8.6%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Highland?
20 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Highland work?
1% work in town.
Is Highland walkable?
Highland is more walkable than 16% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.0 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Highland without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Highland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Highland
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.