Jefferson Township has some of the lowest unemployment in the country, with hardly anyone out of work
Only 3% work in Jefferson Township; the top destination outside it is Nappanee (11%, 5 miles). The two grades for Jefferson Township are A for jobs and income and B− for walkability. Household incomes here are higher than in 78% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Jefferson Township, in brief
Fewer jobs are based in Jefferson Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Jefferson Township fell from 904 in 2014 to 388 in 2024, −57%. 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 ↓
Jefferson Township makes and builds things
44% of the jobs based in Jefferson Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Jefferson Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 50%. The jobs ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
37% of the jobs based in Jefferson Township are held by workers 29 or younger, against 26% of Jefferson Township’s own working residents. The jobs ↓
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; with 912 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Jefferson Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Jefferson Township is better than 94% of U.S. towns. Unemployment is its strongest input (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (ahead of 53% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Jefferson Township could be anywhere from A to A+.
Goods, not services: 44% of the jobs in Jefferson Township
388 jobs are based in Jefferson Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Jefferson Township, 2014 → 2024: 904 → 388. 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 Jefferson Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Jefferson Township quiets down on a workday
On a workday 885 residents head out to work, 27 work right here, and 361 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,400 people are in Jefferson Township on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
0.43 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.
Commuting out of Jefferson Township: the destinations
Where Jefferson Township clocks in
11% of workers
10% of workers
8% 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.
Each way, about 20 minutes from Jefferson Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Jefferson Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,250 commuters (the 7% 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.
How far it is to work from Jefferson Township
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.
Getting around Jefferson Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Jefferson Township is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 19.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.3% across Indiana, on an EPA index of 3.8.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,339 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). 40.2% of Jefferson Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Jefferson Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Jefferson Township is 245th of 5,921 U.S. towns of 1,300 to 2,600 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Plandome NY | 1,482 | $250K | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Meridian Hills IN | 1,800 | $212K | 0.8% | 3.6% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 124 | Galena IN | 1,549 | $128K | 1.8% | 4.8% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 177 | Foxcliff Estates IN | 1,674 | $142K | 2.8% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 243 | Fairmount TN | 2,110 | $137K | 3.7% | 0.0% | 1% | A |
| 244 | Hudson IL | 1,750 | $110K | 2.3% | 1.5% | 1% | A |
| 245 | Jefferson Township IN | 1,918 | $101K | 2.0% | 0.0% | 3% | A |
| 246 | Springdale WI | 2,021 | $129K | 2.9% | 2.5% | 2% | A |
| 247 | Robesonia PA | 2,181 | $91K | 3.9% | 0.7% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 5,921 | Paraje NM | 1,333 | $33K | 61.7% | 0.0% | 7% | 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 Jefferson Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
Work next door: 17% of Jefferson Township’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Jefferson Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Township | – | A | B− | 20 min | $101,481 |
| Scott Township | 3% | B+ | B− | 15 min | $86,629 |
| Union Township | under 3% | B+ | A− | 20 min | $72,422 |
| Van Buren Township | 3% | B+ | C+ | 29 min | $73,265 |
| Prairie Township | under 3% | B+ | D | 27 min | $84,333 |
| Nappanee | 11% | C+ | A− | 21 min | $68,892 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Nappanee. Darker towns draw more of Jefferson 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 Jefferson Township: questions
What is the median household income in Jefferson Township?
$101,481 (±$12,574) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Jefferson Township?
2.0%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Jefferson Township?
20 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Jefferson Township work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Nappanee (11%, 5 mi), Goshen (10%, 14 mi), Warsaw (8%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Jefferson Township walkable?
Jefferson Township is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 3.8 out of 20, and 19% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Jefferson Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 40% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Jefferson Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Jefferson 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.