Photo: David Wilson · CC BY 2.0Households in Hammond have lower incomes than those in 90% of U.S. towns
About one in four work in Hammond itself; outside it, Amite City draws the most (6%, 16 miles). Poverty touches 28.9% of residents; Louisiana has 18.9%. The two grades for Hammond 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 the numbers say about work in Hammond
Hammond is where the jobs are
Hammond has 21,480 jobs, 2.9 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 38,000 people are in town, 59% more than the 24,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Hammond draws workers from far and wide
The 21,480 jobs in Hammond are filled from a wide area. Hammond’s own residents hold 9% and the ten next-biggest home towns 13%; the other 78% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Hammond are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 26 across Louisiana. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Louisiana 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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Hammond
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Hammond is better than 18% of U.S. towns, #109 of 161 in Louisiana. Job access by car holds Hammond’s grade up (ahead of 65% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Hammond could be anywhere from D to C.
In and out of Hammond on a workday
On a workday 5,318 residents head out to work, 2,029 work right here, and 19,451 people come in from elsewhere.
About 38,000 people are in Hammond on a workday afternoon, 59% more than live here.
2.9 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
Where Hammond’s workforce comes from
Where Hammond clocks in
6% of workers
5% 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.
From Hammond, about 21 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Hammond workers work from home, vs 8% across Louisiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,530 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across Louisiana: 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.
The 21,480 jobs based in Hammond
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Hammond, 2013 → 2023: 19,195 → 21,480. 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 Hammond’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Half of Hammond commutes less than 18 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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Hammond
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Hammond is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns, #18 of 161 in Louisiana. Both inputs place Hammond 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 9,236 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). 9.2% of Hammond households have no vehicle (Louisiana 8.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Hammond’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 17,000 to 32,000, and where Hammond sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 340 | Central LA | 30,313 | $90K | 5.4% | 2.2% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 360 | Youngsville LA | 19,980 | $106K | 9.1% | 1.2% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 993 | Zachary LA | 20,621 | $84K | 8.5% | 6.9% | 10% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,469 | Anderson SC | 31,323 | $47K | 21.0% | 6.8% | 22% | C− |
| 1,470 | Mercedes TX | 17,915 | $47K | 28.6% | 6.8% | 12% | C− |
| 1,471 | Hammond LA | 24,032 | $48K | 28.9% | 5.9% | 28% | C− |
| 1,472 | Amsterdam NY | 18,093 | $56K | 20.2% | 6.7% | 22% | C− |
| 1,473 | Conway SC | 30,627 | $57K | 21.0% | 8.3% | 25% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,577 | Nogales AZ | 19,495 | $43K | 28.0% | 15.7% | 37% | 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 Hammond, the top three, the last and three more from Louisiana.
Work in the towns next to Hammond
The biggest share goes to Ponchatoula (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Hammond workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hammond | – | C− | A− | 21 min | $48,166 |
| Ponchatoula | 3% | B− | C+ | 33 min | $51,161 |
| Natalbany | under 2% | D | C− | 27 min | $32,483 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Hammond’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 Hammond: questions
What is the median household income in Hammond?
$48,166 (±$6,843) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $60,756 across Louisiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Hammond?
28.9%, against 18.9% across Louisiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Hammond?
21 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Louisiana and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Hammond work?
28% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Amite City (6%, 16 mi), Baton Rouge (5%, 40 mi), New Orleans (4%, 44 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Hammond walkable?
Hammond is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.4 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Hammond without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Hammond, from the people who make the trip.
More of Hammond
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.