Photo: T.S. Custadio ToddC4176 15:04, 3 February 2007 (UTC) · CC BY-SA 3.0With 0.6 jobs for every working resident, most of Swansea works elsewhere
4,864 jobs are based in Swansea, and 8,651 of its residents work somewhere. For jobs and income Swansea is better than 93% of U.S. towns (A); for walkability it is more walkable than 51% of U.S. towns (B−). Measured by household income, Swansea is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Swansea and work: the main findings
A lot of Swansea workers cross into Rhode Island
23% of Swansea workers work outside Massachusetts, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Providence (6%), East Providence (2%) and Warren (2%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Swansea
71% of Swansea residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 53% of the jobs based in Swansea pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 90% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
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.
Inside Swansea’s Jobs & income grade
The poverty rate is its strongest input (2.8%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.5%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Swansea could be anywhere from A− to A+.
14% of working residents work in Fall River
Where Swansea clocks in
14% of workers
7% of workers
6% 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 Swansea’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Swansea, 2014 → 2024: 4,464 → 4,864. 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 Swansea’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many people are in Swansea by day
On a workday 7,820 residents head out to work, 831 work right here, and 4,033 people come in from elsewhere.
About 14,000 people are in Swansea on a workday afternoon, 21% 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.
Commuting from Swansea: about 26 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Swansea workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,938 commuters (the 7% 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.
How far it is to work from Swansea
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.
Most of Swansea commutes by car
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.2% 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 8,573 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 25% 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 0.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 49% 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). 2.9% of Swansea households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Swansea’s commuters take a bus or train.
247th of 2,103: where Swansea ranks among U.S. towns of 12,000 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Westwood MA | 16,426 | $223K | 4.6% | 1.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Hopkinton MA | 19,866 | $223K | 2.5% | 2.3% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 76 | Sharon MA | 18,798 | $192K | 3.8% | 3.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 245 | Rye NY | 16,614 | $240K | 2.7% | 5.4% | 9% | A |
| 246 | Twinsburg OH | 18,939 | $99K | 4.1% | 2.6% | 9% | A |
| 247 | Swansea MA | 17,701 | $116K | 2.8% | 3.5% | 10% | A |
| 248 | Hooksett NH | 15,346 | $118K | 3.3% | 2.5% | 9% | A |
| 249 | Lewisboro NY | 12,162 | $232K | 1.9% | 4.4% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,103 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 Swansea, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
How Swansea compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Somerset (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
Darker towns draw more of Swansea’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 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 Swansea: questions
What is the median household income in Swansea?
$116,364 (±$14,438) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Swansea?
2.8%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Swansea?
26 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Swansea work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Fall River (14%, 7 mi), Boston (7%, 41 mi), Providence (6%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Swansea walkable?
Swansea is more walkable than 51% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 8.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Swansea without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Swansea, from the people who make the trip.
More of Swansea
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. 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.