Photo: Marcbela (Marc N. Belanger) · Public domainHousehold incomes in Rockland are higher than in 85% of U.S. towns
Poverty touches 6.5% of residents, where Massachusetts as a whole has 10.0%. For jobs and income Rockland is better than 84% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns (A−). Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 47.9 in Boston.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Rockland
Rockland trades workers with the towns around it
Rockland has about as many jobs (8,107) as working residents (8,902), but they are mostly different people: 8,092 residents leave for work each day while 7,297 people come in. Only 10% of the jobs in Rockland are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Most jobs in Rockland pay over $40,000 a year
73% of the jobs based in Rockland pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
Rockland draws workers from far and wide
The 8,107 jobs in Rockland are filled from a wide area. Rockland’s own residents hold 10% and the ten next-biggest home towns 33%; the other 57% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
The figures behind Rockland’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car holds Rockland’s grade up (ahead of 89% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Rockland could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
How many people are in Rockland by day
On a workday 8,092 residents head out to work, 810 work right here, and 7,297 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 (0.91 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.
73% of the jobs in Rockland pay over $3,333 a month
8,107 jobs are based in Rockland.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rockland, 2013 → 2023: 8,346 → 8,107. 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 Rockland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
18% of working residents work in Boston
Where Rockland clocks in
18% of workers
5% 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 Rockland: about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rockland workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,386 commuters (the 15% 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.
Rockland’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Rockland is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 14.1% across Massachusetts.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,830 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 38% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 8% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 54% 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). 4.3% of Rockland households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Rockland’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Rockland is 500th among 1,822 U.S. towns of 13,000 to 24,000
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | Hopkinton MA | 19,866 | $223K | 2.5% | 2.3% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 65 | Sharon MA | 18,798 | $192K | 3.8% | 3.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 498 | Castaic CA | 17,999 | $130K | 5.1% | 4.4% | 3% | A− |
| 499 | Grosse Pointe Woods MI | 15,792 | $126K | 4.9% | 5.8% | 6% | A− |
| 500 | Rockland MA | 17,949 | $112K | 6.5% | 4.4% | 9% | A− |
| 501 | Fairfield Township OH | 23,392 | $108K | 4.7% | 4.6% | 3% | A− |
| 502 | Cary IL | 17,932 | $113K | 4.8% | 5.0% | 8% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,822 | 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 Rockland, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
Work in the towns next to Rockland
The biggest share goes to Norwell (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
Darker towns draw more of Rockland’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 Rockland: questions
What is the median household income in Rockland?
$112,405 (±$12,309) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rockland?
6.5%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rockland?
33 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rockland work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boston (18%, 15 mi), Weymouth Town (5%, 6 mi), Quincy (5%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Rockland walkable?
Rockland is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 9.3 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Rockland without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 8% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Rockland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rockland
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.