Photo: Chris Rycroft from Madison, Wisconsin, United States · CC BY 2.0Earning a living in Alpena Township
There are 4,120 jobs in Alpena Township; 3,199 of its residents have a job. About one in five work in Alpena Township itself; outside it, Alpena draws the most (37%, 3 miles). The trip to work takes 17 minutes on average, where Michigan has 24 and the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Alpena Township apart on work
Alpena Township and Alpena trade workers both ways
Alpena is the top workplace for Alpena Township residents (37%) and also where the most people who work in Alpena Township come from (19% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Commutes from Alpena Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 24 across Michigan. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Michigan worker. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
35% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published.
The places Alpena Township commutes to
Where Alpena Township clocks in
37% of workers
1% of workers
1% 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 trip to work from Alpena Township: about 17 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Alpena Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,202 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% 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.
How many miles Alpena Township commutes
About 35% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
In and out of Alpena Township on a workday
On a workday 2,494 residents head out to work, 705 work right here, and 3,415 people come in from elsewhere.
About 10,000 people are in Alpena Township on a workday afternoon, 10% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.29 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
What Alpena Township’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Alpena Township, 2011 → 2021: 4,814 → 4,120. 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 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Alpena Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Alpena Township and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Maple Ridge Township (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Alpena Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpena Township | – | — | — | 17 min | $52,239 |
| Maple Ridge Township | 1% | D | C | 17 min | $65,096 |
| Sanborn Township | under 1% | D | C+ | 31 min | $61,827 |
| Wilson Township | under 1% | D | B− | 22 min | $62,143 |
| Presque Isle Township | under 1% | B− | D | 33 min | $94,412 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Alpena Township’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 2021, 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 Alpena Township: questions
What is the median household income in Alpena Township?
$52,239 (±$6,996) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Alpena Township?
19.2%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Alpena Township?
17 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Alpena Township work?
22% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Alpena (37%, 3 mi), Lansing (1%, 174 mi), Ypsilanti Township (1%, 199 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Alpena Township without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Alpena Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Alpena Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, 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.