Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Peru has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Only 2% work in Peru itself; outside it, Pittsfield draws the most (27%, 12 miles). There are 122 jobs in Peru; 463 of its residents have a job. For 10% of workers, the job is at home, next to 19% for Massachusetts as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Peru: the gist
How a workday changes Peru
On a workday 452 residents head out to work, 11 work right here, and 111 people come in from elsewhere.
About 450 people are in Peru on a workday afternoon, 43% 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.
Out of Peru to work: where people go
Where Peru clocks in
27% of workers
9% of workers
2% 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.
Peru makes things: 30% of its jobs are in goods
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Peru, 2013 → 2023: 42 → 122. 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 Peru’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 31 minutes from Peru
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Peru workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 280 commuters (the 10% 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.
Miles to work from Peru
About 26% 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.
Peru and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Hinsdale (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Peru workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peru | – | — | — | 31 min | $90,750 |
| Hinsdale | 1% | B− | B+ | 23 min | $77,845 |
| Middlefield | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Worthington | under 2% | B− | B− | 41 min | $91,667 |
| Washington | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Cummington | under 2% | — | — | 39 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Middlefield, Washington and Cummington: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Peru’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 Peru: questions
What is the median household income in Peru?
$90,750 (±$18,398) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Peru?
3.2%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Peru?
31 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Peru work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Pittsfield (27%, 12 mi), Dalton (9%, 8 mi), North Adams (2%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Peru without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Peru, from the people who make the trip.
More of Peru
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.