Jerry Nichols Tavern · Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0Households in North Reading earn more than those in 95% of U.S. towns
Below the poverty line: 2.7% of residents, against 10.0% across Massachusetts. North Reading grades A+ for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. Only 8% stay in North Reading for work; outside it, Boston is the main destination (19%, 17 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
North Reading at work: what stands out
North Reading trades workers with the towns around it
North Reading has about as many jobs (8,764) as working residents (8,219), but they are mostly different people: 7,585 residents leave for work each day while 8,130 people come in. Only 7% of the jobs in North Reading are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
North Reading draws workers from far and wide
The 8,764 jobs in North Reading are filled from a wide area. North Reading’s own residents hold 7% and the ten next-biggest home towns 31%; the other 62% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
North Reading workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 34 minutes each way, against 29 across Massachusetts. Over a year that’s about 261 hours of commuting, 38 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.
Inside North Reading’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, North Reading is better than 96% of U.S. towns, #22 of 283 in Massachusetts. Household income is its strongest input ($147,768, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.6%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, North Reading could be anywhere from A to A+.
How many people are in North Reading by day
On a workday 7,585 residents head out to work, 634 work right here, and 8,130 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 (1.07 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.
Out of North Reading to work: where people go
Where North Reading clocks in
19% 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.
The daily trip from North Reading: about 34 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Reading workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,213 commuters (the 26% who work from home are left out). Across Massachusetts: 75% drive alone, 8% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The kinds of work in North Reading
8,764 jobs are based in North Reading.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Reading, 2013 → 2023: 6,771 → 8,764. 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 North Reading’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from North Reading
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.
Getting around North Reading: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Reading is more walkable than 68% of U.S. towns, #170 of 283 in Massachusetts. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 4.6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 14.1% across Massachusetts, on an EPA index of 7.1.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 8,406 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.4% of North Reading households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of North Reading’s commuters take a bus or train.
North Reading is 109th of 1,888 U.S. towns of 12,000 to 22,000 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | Westwood MA | 16,426 | $223K | 4.6% | 1.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 24 | Hopkinton MA | 19,866 | $223K | 2.5% | 2.3% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 72 | Sharon MA | 18,798 | $192K | 3.8% | 3.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 107 | Grimes IA | 17,405 | $120K | 4.4% | 1.9% | 9% | A+ |
| 108 | Algoma Township MI | 12,454 | $123K | 4.0% | 1.8% | 3% | A+ |
| 109 | North Reading MA | 16,553 | $148K | 2.7% | 3.6% | 8% | A+ |
| 110 | Silver Spring Township PA | 21,670 | $125K | 4.6% | 1.7% | 12% | A+ |
| 111 | Barrington RI | 16,961 | $153K | 4.5% | 2.6% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,888 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 North Reading, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
North Reading and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Wilmington (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | North Reading workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Reading | – | A+ | B+ | 34 min | $147,768 |
| Reading | 2% | A+ | A | 31 min | $165,912 |
| Lynnfield | under 3% | A+ | B+ | 32 min | $175,265 |
| Middleton | under 3% | A | C+ | 30 min | $167,402 |
| Wilmington | 3% | A | A− | 30 min | $168,152 |
| Andover | 3% | A | A | 29 min | $172,606 |
| North Andover | under 3% | A | A− | 32 min | $140,670 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of North Reading’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 North Reading: questions
What is the median household income in North Reading?
$147,768 (±$24,518) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Reading?
2.7%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Reading?
34 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Reading work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boston (19%, 17 mi), Cambridge (5%, 14 mi), Woburn (4%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is North Reading walkable?
North Reading is more walkable than 68% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.1 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Reading without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Reading, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Reading
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.