Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHousehold incomes in Princeton trail those of 77% of U.S. towns
2% of workers have no commute at all, next to 11% for Indiana as a whole. Below the poverty line: 16.9% of residents; Indiana has 12.3%. The two grades for Princeton are C+ for jobs and income and A− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Princeton apart on work
Princeton trades workers with the towns around it
Princeton has about as many jobs (4,121) as working residents (3,709), but they are mostly different people: 2,855 residents leave for work each day while 3,267 people come in. Only 21% of the jobs in Princeton are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Princeton are quick
The average trip to work takes 14 minutes, against 24 across Indiana. That’s about 77 hours a year less on the road than the typical Indiana worker. Time on the road ↓
Few Princeton workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 11% across Indiana. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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.
Why Princeton gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Princeton is better than 38% of U.S. towns, #420 of 593 in Indiana. Unemployment holds Princeton’s grade up (2.8%, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Princeton could be anywhere from C− to B.
In and out of Princeton on a workday
On a workday 2,855 residents head out to work, 854 work right here, and 3,267 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.11 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
How long Princeton spends getting to work: about 14 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Princeton workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,705 commuters (the 2% 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.
26% of working residents work in Patoka Township
Where Princeton clocks in
26% of workers
13% 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.
Jobs in Princeton: what the 4,121 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Princeton, 2013 → 2023: 4,501 → 4,121. 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 Princeton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Princeton, by distance
About 16% 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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Princeton is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Princeton is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns, #46 of 593 in Indiana. Both inputs place Princeton 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 3,789 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). 8.3% of Princeton households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Princeton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Princeton places 2,030th of 2,922 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 6,000 to 11,500
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Worth Township IN | 6,688 | $123K | 4.1% | 0.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 161 | Miller Township IN | 10,161 | $113K | 3.0% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 180 | Lakes of the Four Seasons IN | 7,402 | $122K | 3.1% | 0.8% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,028 | Springfield FL | 8,551 | $54K | 22.3% | 2.1% | 3% | C+ |
| 2,029 | Garrett IN | 6,694 | $64K | 15.3% | 4.6% | 16% | C+ |
| 2,030 | Princeton IN | 8,524 | $58K | 16.9% | 2.8% | 23% | C+ |
| 2,031 | Newton Township OH | 8,515 | $62K | 11.4% | 5.9% | 11% | C+ |
| 2,032 | Guntersville AL | 9,394 | $68K | 18.1% | 3.1% | 20% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,922 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Princeton, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
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 Princeton: questions
What is the median household income in Princeton?
$57,618 (±$6,605) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Princeton?
16.9%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Princeton?
14 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Princeton work?
23% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Patoka Township (26%, 0 mi), Evansville (13%, 25 mi), Indianapolis (3%, 125 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Princeton walkable?
Princeton is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.6 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Princeton without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Princeton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Princeton
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.