At 0.5%, unemployment in Polk Township is lower than in 97% of U.S. towns
Working residents average 42 minutes each way (Indiana 24, U.S. 26). The two grades for Polk Township are A− for jobs and income and D for walkability. Only 5% stay in Polk Township for work; outside it, New Albany is the main destination (11%, 16 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Polk Township apart
The figures behind Polk Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Polk Township is better than 81% of U.S. towns, #101 of 593 in Indiana. Unemployment holds Polk Township’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 40% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Polk Township could be anywhere from B+ to A.
From Polk Township, about 42 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 13.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Polk Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,325 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.
Who leaves Polk Township for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,017 residents head out to work, 49 work right here, and 307 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Polk Township on a workday afternoon, 26% fewer than live here.
0.33 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.
Where Polk Township goes to work
Where Polk Township clocks in
11% of workers
8% 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.
Making and building: 28% of jobs based in Polk Township
356 jobs are based in Polk Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Polk Township, 2014 → 2024: 412 → 356. 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 Polk Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many miles Polk Township commutes
About 25% 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.
For most of Polk Township, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Polk Township is more walkable than 6% of U.S. towns, #554 of 593 in Indiana. Both inputs place Polk 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 1,422 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). 2.9% of Polk Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Polk Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Polk Township places 760th of 4,969 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 1,900 to 3,700
| # | 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 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 68 | Clark Township IN | 3,026 | $138K | 5.2% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 184 | Swan Township IN | 2,327 | $112K | 0.7% | 0.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 207 | Wills Township IN | 2,111 | $113K | 1.8% | 0.0% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 758 | Lewiston NY | 2,492 | $74K | 5.9% | 1.2% | 9% | A− |
| 759 | Lithopolis OH | 2,969 | $115K | 7.5% | 4.3% | 2% | A− |
| 760 | Polk Township IN | 2,720 | $91K | 5.7% | 0.5% | 5% | A− |
| 761 | Newcastle ME | 1,915 | $90K | 3.5% | 0.0% | 8% | A− |
| 762 | Reliez Valley CA | 3,173 | $250K | 5.3% | 6.9% | 1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,969 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 0% | 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 Polk Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
The towns around Polk Township
The biggest share goes to Wood Township (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Polk Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk Township | – | A− | D | 42 min | $91,439 |
| Franklin Township | under 2% | B | D− | 28 min | $71,705 |
| Wood Township | 2% | A | C+ | 35 min | $86,528 |
| Pierce Township | under 2% | C− | D | 31 min | $57,344 |
| Monroe Township | under 2% | A− | C− | 28 min | $90,733 |
| Jackson Township | under 2% | B− | C− | 48 min | $68,482 |
| Washington Township | under 2% | D | C | 27 min | $59,083 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Polk 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 Polk Township: questions
What is the median household income in Polk Township?
$91,439 (±$12,544) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Polk Township?
5.7%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Polk Township?
42 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Polk Township work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New Albany (11%, 16 mi), Jeffersonville (8%, 19 mi), Salem (8%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Polk Township walkable?
Polk Township is more walkable than 6% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 3.7 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Polk Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Polk Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Polk 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.