Jobs, pay and the trip to work in Comstock Northwest
Only 2% work in Comstock Northwest itself; outside it, Kalamazoo draws the most (27%, 5 miles). Working residents average 19 minutes each way (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). Comstock Northwest has 2,008 jobs for 2,497 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Comstock Northwest: the figures worth knowing
A lot of Comstock Northwest works one town over
33% of working residents work in a town that borders Comstock Northwest: Kalamazoo (27%) and Kalamazoo Township (6%). Next door ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Comstock Northwest
57% of Comstock Northwest residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 32% of the jobs based in Comstock Northwest pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
46% of the jobs in Comstock Northwest are in trade, transport and utilities, against 16% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Comstock Northwest pay little
30% of the jobs based in Comstock Northwest pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 39% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. The jobs ↓
Most Comstock Northwest residents work close to home
62% 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 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.
What Comstock Northwest’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Comstock Northwest, 2011 → 2021: 2,212 → 2,008. 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 Comstock Northwest’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The distance from Comstock Northwest to work
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.
Comstock Northwest by day and by night
On a workday 2,454 residents head out to work, 43 work right here, and 1,965 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.80 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.
Where people from Comstock Northwest work
Where Comstock Northwest clocks in
27% 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.
Comstock Northwest’s commute takes about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Comstock Northwest workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,636 commuters (the 11% 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.
33% of Comstock Northwest works in a town next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Comstock Northwest workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comstock Northwest | – | — | — | 19 min | $73,475 |
| Kalamazoo | 27% | C | A | 19 min | $52,272 |
| Kalamazoo Township | 6% | C+ | C+ | 21 min | $58,349 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Kalamazoo. Darker towns draw more of Comstock Northwest’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 Comstock Northwest: questions
What is the median household income in Comstock Northwest?
$73,475 (±$12,388) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Comstock Northwest?
6.9%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Comstock Northwest?
19 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Comstock Northwest work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Kalamazoo (27%, 5 mi), Portage (12%, 9 mi), Comstock Township (7%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Comstock Northwest without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Comstock Northwest, from the people who make the trip.
More of Comstock Northwest
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.