Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0Most of South Lancaster commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident
South Lancaster has 167 jobs; 802 of its residents have a job. Hardly any stay in South Lancaster for work; outside it, Boston is the main destination (9%, 36 miles). Home is the office for 43% of workers, against 19% across Massachusetts.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in South Lancaster: the gist
A lot of South Lancaster works from home
43% of South Lancaster workers work from home, against 19% across Massachusetts. Time on the road ↓
South Lancaster’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside South Lancaster is Boston, 36 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (76) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
South Lancaster is a place people come home to
There are 167 jobs based in South Lancaster, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday South Lancaster has about 1,500 people in it, 29% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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; with 802 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
A commute of about 35 minutes in South Lancaster
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of South Lancaster workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 499 commuters (the 43% 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.
Half of South Lancaster commutes less than 18 miles
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.
South Lancaster on a workday afternoon
On a workday 801 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 166 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,500 people are in South Lancaster on a workday afternoon, 29% 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 2024, primary jobs.
The towns that employ South Lancaster’s residents
Where South Lancaster clocks in
9% of workers
8% 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.
What South Lancaster’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in South Lancaster, 2014 → 2024: 148 → 167. 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 South Lancaster’s own residents hold wherever they work.
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 South Lancaster: questions
What is the median household income in South Lancaster?
$109,173 (±$40,773) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in South Lancaster?
1.3%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from South Lancaster?
35 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 43% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in South Lancaster work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boston (9%, 36 mi), Worcester (8%, 13 mi), Lancaster (5%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around South Lancaster without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from South Lancaster, from the people who make the trip.
More of South Lancaster
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.