Household incomes in Merrydale are lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
The average commute takes 27 minutes each way, against 26 across Louisiana and 26 nationally. 30.0% of residents are in poverty, where Louisiana as a whole has 18.9%. Jobs and income earn Merrydale D; getting around on foot earns it C.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Merrydale and work: the main findings
Nearly half of Merrydale works in Baton Rouge
1,632 working residents, 47%, have their main job in Baton Rouge, 4.2 miles away across the town line. That’s far more as work in Merrydale itself. The commute map ↓
Merrydale is a place people come home to
There are 381 jobs based in Merrydale, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Merrydale has about 6,400 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Most Merrydale residents work close to home
66% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
Fewer than half of Merrydale workers earn over $40,000 a year
41% of Merrydale’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, wherever they work, and 19% earn $1,250 a month or less. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Income, poverty and work: Merrydale’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Merrydale is better than 14% of U.S. towns, #115 of 161 in Louisiana. Job access by car holds Merrydale’s grade up (ahead of 86% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (19.5%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Merrydale could be anywhere from D to C.
47% of working residents work in Baton Rouge
Where Merrydale clocks in
47% 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.
Who commutes out of Merrydale, and who commutes in
On a workday 3,498 residents head out to work, 9 work right here, and 372 people come in from elsewhere.
About 6,400 people are in Merrydale on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
0.11 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.
Merrydale’s commute, mile by mile
About 18% 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.
What work there is in Merrydale: 381 jobs
381 jobs are based in Merrydale.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Merrydale, 2014 → 2024: 440 → 381. 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 Merrydale’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 27 minutes from Merrydale
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Merrydale workers work from home, vs 8% across Louisiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,809 commuters (the 10% 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.
Driving is how Merrydale gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Merrydale is more walkable than 31% of U.S. towns, #119 of 161 in Louisiana. Both inputs place Merrydale 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 3,120 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 Merrydale households have no vehicle (Louisiana 8.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Merrydale’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Merrydale compares with U.S. towns of 6,600 to 12,800
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 186 | Addis LA | 7,679 | $108K | 3.2% | 1.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 359 | Belle Chasse LA | 10,934 | $115K | 6.1% | 2.5% | 15% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 867 | Moss Bluff LA | 12,482 | $92K | 8.9% | 1.1% | 5% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,567 | Rayne LA | 6,995 | $42K | 25.5% | 7.2% | 11% | D |
| 2,568 | West Monroe LA | 12,478 | $49K | 26.3% | 9.6% | 20% | D |
| 2,569 | Merrydale LA | 9,490 | $42K | 30.0% | 19.5% | <1% | D |
| 2,570 | Chanute KS | 8,584 | $51K | 17.3% | 5.2% | 51% | D |
| 2,571 | Guadalupe CA | 8,846 | $67K | 27.7% | 14.4% | 7% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 2,831 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 6% | 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 Merrydale, the top three, the last and three more from Louisiana.
Work next door: 47% of Merrydale’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Merrydale workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merrydale | – | D | C | 27 min | $41,500 |
| Baton Rouge | 47% | C− | A− | 21 min | $49,994 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Baton Rouge. Darker towns draw more of Merrydale’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 Merrydale: questions
What is the median household income in Merrydale?
$41,500 (±$20,680) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $60,756 across Louisiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Merrydale?
30.0%, against 18.9% across Louisiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Merrydale?
27 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Louisiana and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Merrydale work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Baton Rouge (47%, 4 mi), St. George (9%, 10 mi), New Orleans (3%, 76 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Merrydale walkable?
Merrydale is more walkable than 31% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 5.6 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Merrydale without a car?
1% 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 Merrydale, from the people who make the trip.
More of Merrydale
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.