Sterling Township’s household incomes are lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
Below the poverty line: 41.3% of residents, next to 12.3% across Indiana. The two grades for Sterling Township are D− for jobs and income and C− for walkability. Only 4% stay in Sterling Township for work; outside it, Jasper is the main destination (9%, 27 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Sterling Township in brief
Fewer jobs are based in Sterling Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Sterling Township fell from 648 in 2013 to 289 in 2023, −55%. 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 ↓
Sterling Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Sterling Township is Jasper, 27 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (53) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Sterling Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 35 minutes each way, against 24 across Indiana. Over a year that’s about 268 hours of commuting, 84 more than the state’s typical worker. 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; with 578 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The four measures behind Sterling Township’s grade
On income, poverty and job access, Sterling Township is near the bottom of U.S. towns. All three inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Sterling Township’s grade.
Unemployment (7.5%) is left out: Sterling Township’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Sterling Township could be anywhere from D− to D.
What work there is in Sterling Township: 289 jobs
289 jobs are based in Sterling Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sterling Township, 2013 → 2023: 648 → 289. 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 Sterling Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Sterling Township, by distance
About 24% 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.
About 35 minutes each way for Sterling Township’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sterling Township workers work from home, vs 11% across Indiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 500 commuters (the 8% 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 many people are in Sterling Township by day
On a workday 552 residents head out to work, 26 work right here, and 263 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,300 people are in Sterling Township on a workday afternoon, 18% fewer than live here.
0.50 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.
The towns that employ Sterling Township’s residents
Where Sterling Township clocks in
9% 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.
Most trips from Sterling Township start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Sterling Township is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.3% across Indiana.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 543 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). 4.6% of Sterling Township households have no vehicle (Indiana 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Sterling Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 1,100 to 2,200, and where Sterling Township sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Meridian Hills IN | 1,800 | $212K | 0.8% | 3.6% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 117 | Galena IN | 1,549 | $128K | 1.8% | 4.8% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 131 | Ogden Dunes IN | 1,163 | $117K | 3.9% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 6,071 | East Carbon UT | 1,565 | $38K | 22.4% | 18.0% | 2% | D− |
| 6,072 | Exmore VA | 1,396 | $29K | 28.9% | 7.3% | 12% | D− |
| 6,073 | Sterling Township IN | 1,593 | $41K | 41.3% | 7.5% | 4% | D− |
| 6,074 | Camden AL | 1,646 | $36K | 25.5% | 15.1% | 29% | D− |
| 6,075 | Fort Deposit AL | 1,114 | $22K | 47.7% | 15.9% | 8% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 6,161 | Paraje NM | 1,333 | $33K | 61.7% | 0.0% | 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 Sterling Township, the top three, the last and three more from Indiana.
Work in the towns next to Sterling Township
The biggest share goes to Patoka Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sterling Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sterling Township | – | D− | C− | 35 min | $41,250 |
| Patoka Township | 3% | D | C | 38 min | $60,441 |
| Union Township | under 3% | — | — | 38 min | — |
| Liberty Township | under 3% | D | B− | 31 min | $49,593 |
| Whiskey Run Township | 3% | D | C | 43 min | $58,531 |
| Jennings Township | under 3% | D | C− | 33 min | $48,750 |
| Ohio Township | under 3% | — | — | 52 min | — |
| Greenfield Township | under 3% | — | — | 39 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Union Township, Ohio Township and Greenfield Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Sterling 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 Sterling Township: questions
What is the median household income in Sterling Township?
$41,250 (±$15,619) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,957 across Indiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sterling Township?
41.3%, against 12.3% across Indiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sterling Township?
35 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Indiana and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sterling Township work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Jasper (9%, 27 mi), Indianapolis (7%, 101 mi), Ferdinand (4%, 24 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Sterling Township walkable?
Sterling Township is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.7 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Sterling Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sterling Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sterling 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.