Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Households in Princeton have higher incomes than those in 96% of U.S. towns
Working from home is the commute for 30% of workers, against 19% across Massachusetts. Below the poverty line: 4.2% of residents, next to 10.0% across Massachusetts. Jobs and income earn Princeton A+; getting around on foot earns it B−.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Princeton apart on work
Many jobs in Princeton pay little
53% of the jobs based in Princeton pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 45% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. The jobs ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Princeton
74% of Princeton residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 34% of the jobs based in Princeton pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 94% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Princeton workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 37 minutes each way, against 29 across Massachusetts. Over a year that’s about 284 hours of commuting, 61 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Home offices are common in Princeton
30% of Princeton workers work from home, against 19% across Massachusetts. Time on the road ↓
Princeton has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Princeton went from 696 in 2013 to 957 in 2023, +38%. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
What’s behind Princeton’s Jobs & income grade
Unemployment is its strongest input (0.4%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (ahead of 61% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Princeton could be anywhere from A to A+.
Most jobs in Princeton are in services
957 jobs are based in Princeton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Princeton, 2013 → 2023: 696 → 957. 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 Princeton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Princeton spends getting to work: about 37 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Princeton workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,315 commuters (the 29% 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.
Princeton quiets down on a workday
On a workday 1,643 residents head out to work, 106 work right here, and 851 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,800 people are in Princeton on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
0.55 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.
18% of working residents work in Worcester
Where Princeton clocks in
18% of workers
6% 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.
How many miles Princeton commutes
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.
For most of Princeton, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Princeton is more walkable than 49% of U.S. towns, #223 of 283 in Massachusetts. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 4.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 14.1% across Massachusetts, on an EPA index of 5.2.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,864 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). 0.8% of Princeton households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Princeton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 4,474 U.S. towns of 2,500 to 4,900, Princeton comes 170th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 113 | West Newbury MA | 4,709 | $180K | 1.6% | 2.4% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 141 | Avon MA | 4,861 | $131K | 4.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 168 | Beecher IL | 4,740 | $103K | 2.7% | 1.3% | 11% | A+ |
| 169 | Merton WI | 3,676 | $174K | 6.6% | 1.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 170 | Princeton MA | 3,618 | $159K | 4.2% | 0.4% | 6% | A+ |
| 171 | Lima Township MI | 4,215 | $119K | 1.5% | 2.1% | 2% | A+ |
| 172 | Salford Township PA | 3,086 | $126K | 6.7% | 0.8% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 276 | Millville MA | 3,186 | $127K | 4.6% | 3.0% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 4,474 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Princeton, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
Next door to Princeton
The biggest share goes to Sterling (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Princeton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton | – | A+ | B− | 37 min | $158,750 |
| Sterling | 3% | A− | B+ | 34 min | $129,063 |
| Westminster | under 2% | A | C | 27 min | $106,331 |
| Hubbardston | under 2% | A− | D | 36 min | $123,500 |
| Leominster | 3% | B− | B+ | 26 min | $83,816 |
| Rutland | under 2% | A− | C− | 37 min | $145,707 |
| Holden | 3% | A− | C− | 27 min | $141,923 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Princeton’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 Princeton: questions
What is the median household income in Princeton?
$158,750 (±$46,102) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Princeton?
4.2%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Princeton?
37 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 30% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Princeton work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Worcester (18%, 13 mi), Boston (6%, 45 mi), Marlborough (4%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Princeton walkable?
Princeton is more walkable than 49% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 5.2 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Princeton without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Princeton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Princeton
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.