Benson-Hammond House · Photo: Pubdog · Public domainHousehold incomes in Ferndale are higher than in 73% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 8.2%; Maryland has 9.4%. For jobs and income Ferndale is better than 74% of U.S. towns (B+); for walkability it is more walkable than 76% of U.S. towns (A−). Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 26.3 in Baltimore.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Ferndale apart on work
Ferndale and Baltimore trade workers both ways
Baltimore is the top workplace for Ferndale residents (15%) and also where the most people who work in Ferndale come from (14% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Ferndale draws workers from far and wide
The 5,606 jobs in Ferndale are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 34%; the other 62% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Ferndale are quick
The average trip to work takes 26 minutes, against 31 across Maryland. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Maryland worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Why Ferndale gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Job access by car holds Ferndale’s grade up (ahead of 94% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (5.1%, 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, Ferndale could be anywhere from B− to A+.
15% of working residents work in Baltimore
Where Ferndale clocks in
15% of workers
8% 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.
Time on the road from Ferndale: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Ferndale workers work from home, vs 19% across Maryland. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,515 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across Maryland: 80% drive alone, 5% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Who leaves Ferndale for work, and who comes in
On a workday 7,281 residents head out to work, 215 work right here, and 5,391 people come in from elsewhere.
About 16,000 people are in Ferndale on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.75 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.
Jobs in Ferndale: what the 5,606 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Ferndale, 2013 → 2023: 5,686 → 5,606. 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 Ferndale’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Ferndale, by distance
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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Ferndale
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 8.0% across Maryland.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,428 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 60% 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 3.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 80% 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). 8.2% of Ferndale households have no vehicle (Maryland 8.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Ferndale’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Ferndale is 851st among 2,103 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | Annapolis Neck MD | 12,032 | $174K | 3.3% | 0.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Colesville MD | 14,519 | $131K | 3.4% | 2.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 68 | Honeygo MD | 12,250 | $146K | 1.8% | 2.8% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 849 | Ephrata PA | 13,647 | $70K | 7.9% | 2.4% | 9% | B+ |
| 850 | Onalaska WI | 20,297 | $86K | 6.0% | 3.4% | 18% | B+ |
| 851 | Ferndale MD | 17,529 | $95K | 8.2% | 5.1% | 3% | B+ |
| 852 | Brooklyn Park MD | 16,067 | $88K | 8.3% | 4.6% | 3% | B+ |
| 853 | Greenwood Township IL | 15,270 | $98K | 4.7% | 4.9% | 4% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,103 | 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 Ferndale, the top three, the last and three more from Maryland.
Next door is work for 11% of Ferndale
The biggest share goes to Glen Burnie (8%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Ferndale workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferndale | – | B+ | A− | 26 min | $94,948 |
| Glen Burnie | 8% | B+ | A− | 27 min | $88,280 |
| Linthicum | 3% | A+ | B | 23 min | $134,673 |
| Brooklyn Park | under 2% | B+ | A | 28 min | $87,989 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Ferndale’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 Ferndale: questions
What is the median household income in Ferndale?
$94,948 (±$11,228) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,678 across Maryland and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Ferndale?
8.2%, against 9.4% across Maryland and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Ferndale?
26 minutes each way on average, against 31 across Maryland and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Ferndale work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Baltimore (15%, 8 mi), Glen Burnie (8%, 2 mi), Parole (4%, 14 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Ferndale walkable?
Ferndale is more walkable than 76% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 10.6 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Ferndale without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Ferndale, from the people who make the trip.
More of Ferndale
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.