Most of Smith Township commutes out: there are 0.5 jobs for every working resident
1,238 jobs are based in Smith Township, and 2,440 of its residents work somewhere. Jobs and income earn Smith Township B+; getting around on foot earns it C−. About one in seven work in Smith Township itself; outside it, Fort Wayne draws the most (35%, 14 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Smith Township: the gist
Smith Township makes and builds things
52% of the jobs based in Smith Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Smith Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 34%. The jobs ↓
Smith Township and Fort Wayne trade workers both ways
Fort Wayne is the top workplace for Smith Township residents (35%) and also where the most people who work in Smith Township come from (17% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Smith Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Smith Township fell from 1,704 in 2013 to 1,238 in 2023, −27%. 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 ↓
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.
Where Smith Township’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Smith Township is better than 73% of U.S. towns, #155 of 593 in Indiana. The poverty rate is its strongest input (3.8%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.2%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Smith Township could be anywhere from B− to A.
Making and building: 52% of jobs based in Smith Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Smith Township, 2013 → 2023: 1,704 → 1,238. 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 Smith Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns that employ Smith Township’s residents
Where Smith Township clocks in
11% of workers
5% 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.
Smith Township quiets down on a workday
On a workday 2,123 residents head out to work, 317 work right here, and 921 people come in from elsewhere.
About 4,100 people are in Smith Township on a workday afternoon, 23% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Time on the road from Smith Township: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Smith Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,515 commuters (the 9% 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.
Half of Smith Township commutes less than 14 miles
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.
Most trips from Smith Township start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Smith Township is more walkable than 18% of U.S. towns, #478 of 593 in Indiana. Both inputs place Smith 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 2,765 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). 2.4% of Smith Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Smith Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Smith Township is 1,063rd of 3,582 U.S. towns of 3,700 to 7,100 on jobs and income
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 92 | Milan Township IN | 4,066 | $120K | 1.3% | 0.0% | 9% | A+ |
| 93 | Worth Township IN | 6,688 | $123K | 4.1% | 0.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 140 | Hidden Valley IN | 5,706 | $121K | 1.9% | 1.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,061 | South Monrovia Island CA | 6,830 | $104K | 7.2% | 6.9% | 1% | B+ |
| 1,062 | Park Layne OH | 4,301 | $83K | 13.3% | 1.4% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,063 | Smith Township IN | 5,290 | $82K | 3.8% | 4.2% | 13% | B+ |
| 1,064 | Tracyton WA | 6,137 | $104K | 9.1% | 2.1% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,065 | Jarrell TX | 5,870 | $111K | 2.2% | 9.7% | 6% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,582 | 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 Smith Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
16% of Smith Township works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Churubusco (11%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Smith Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smith Township | – | B+ | C− | 26 min | $81,761 |
| Eel River Township | under 2% | A | D | 21 min | $99,966 |
| Thorncreek Township | under 2% | A | C− | 24 min | $112,548 |
| Green Township | under 2% | A | D | 28 min | $89,792 |
| Union Township | 5% | B | D− | 22 min | $78,125 |
| Churubusco | 11% | B+ | C+ | 20 min | $65,086 |
| Tri-Lakes | under 2% | A | D | 29 min | $115,250 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Smith 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 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 Smith Township: questions
What is the median household income in Smith Township?
$81,761 (±$10,675) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Smith Township?
3.8%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Smith Township?
26 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Smith Township work?
13% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Fort Wayne (35%, 14 mi), Churubusco (11%, 2 mi), Columbia City (5%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Smith Township walkable?
Smith Township is more walkable than 18% 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 Smith Township without a car?
0% 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 Smith Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Smith Township
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.