Photo: Unknown photographer · Public domainFor about two in five of its working residents, Hampden is a commute to Bangor
Household incomes here are higher than in 85% of U.S. towns. For jobs and income Hampden is better than 76% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns (C−). About one in ten work in Hampden itself; outside it, Bangor draws the most (43%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Hampden and work: the main findings
Hampden has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Hampden went from 1,737 in 2013 to 2,910 in 2023, +68%. The jobs ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
45% of the jobs in Hampden are in trade, transport and utilities, against 19% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
Most Hampden residents work close to home
63% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
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.
Inside Hampden’s Jobs & income grade
Household income holds Hampden’s grade up ($111,959, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 42% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Hampden could be anywhere from B− to A.
What work there is in Hampden: 2,910 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Hampden, 2013 → 2023: 1,737 → 2,910. 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 Hampden’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Hampden
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.
The daily flow of workers through Hampden
On a workday 3,301 residents head out to work, 398 work right here, and 2,512 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,300 people are in Hampden on a workday afternoon, 10% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.79 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.
Out of Hampden to work: where people go
Where Hampden clocks in
43% of workers
7% 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.
Each way, about 23 minutes from Hampden
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Hampden workers work from home, vs 16% across Maine. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,166 commuters (the 21% who work from home are left out). Across Maine: 84% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Driving is how Hampden gets around
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 5.0% across Maine.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,021 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 3.3% of Hampden households have no vehicle (Maine 6.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Hampden’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Hampden is 921st of 2,966 U.S. towns of 5,700 to 10,900
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 95 | Cumberland ME | 8,876 | $174K | 3.1% | 0.2% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 309 | Cape Elizabeth ME | 9,827 | $146K | 5.2% | 2.5% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 367 | Buxton ME | 8,681 | $100K | 2.3% | 1.4% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 919 | Briar Chapel NC | 6,049 | $166K | 0.6% | 8.2% | 2% | A− |
| 920 | Nephi UT | 7,488 | $106K | 4.9% | 1.6% | 36% | A− |
| 921 | Hampden ME | 8,078 | $112K | 7.5% | 2.4% | 11% | A− |
| 922 | Pacific MO | 7,824 | $63K | 5.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A− |
| 923 | Barrington NJ | 7,155 | $87K | 7.4% | 4.7% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,966 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Hampden, the top three, the last and three more from Maine.
Work next door: 55% of Hampden’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Hampden workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hampden | – | A− | C− | 23 min | $111,959 |
| Hermon | 4% | A− | D | 23 min | $96,629 |
| Orrington | under 2% | A− | C− | 21 min | $94,556 |
| Newburgh | under 2% | C | D− | 30 min | $76,750 |
| Brewer | 7% | B | B− | 17 min | $66,613 |
| Winterport | 1% | B+ | C− | 32 min | $98,333 |
| Bangor | 43% | C | A | 17 min | $59,942 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Bangor. Darker towns draw more of Hampden’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 Hampden: questions
What is the median household income in Hampden?
$111,959 (±$12,644) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,733 across Maine and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Hampden?
7.5%, against 10.7% across Maine and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Hampden?
23 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Maine and 26 nationally. 21% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Hampden work?
11% work in town.
Is Hampden walkable?
Hampden is more walkable than 20% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.1 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Hampden without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Hampden, from the people who make the trip.
More of Hampden
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.