Photo: WeaponizingArchitecture · CC BY-SA 4.0Unemployment in Fenton (8.7%) is higher than in 91% of U.S. towns
The average commute takes 31 minutes each way (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). For jobs and income Fenton is better than 54% of U.S. towns (B−); for walkability it is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (B). About one in seven stay in Fenton for work; outside it, Flint is the main destination (6%, 16 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Fenton apart on work
No single place dominates Fenton’s commute
The biggest draw, Flint, gets only 6% of working residents, and 60% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Fenton residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
Fenton workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 31 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan. Over a year that’s about 238 hours of commuting, 54 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
34% of the jobs based in Fenton are held by workers 29 or younger, against 25% of Fenton’s own working residents. The jobs ↓
Fenton draws workers from far and wide
The 6,661 jobs in Fenton are filled from a wide area. Fenton’s own residents hold 9% and the ten next-biggest home towns 35%; the other 56% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Fenton
Job access by car holds Fenton’s grade up (ahead of 77% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is two years behind.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Fenton could be anywhere from C to A−.
Where people from Fenton work
Where Fenton clocks in
3% 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.
About 31 minutes to work from Fenton
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Fenton workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,148 commuters (the 16% 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.
What Fenton’s employers do
6,661 jobs are based in Fenton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Fenton, 2011 → 2021: 6,040 → 6,661. 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 Fenton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily flow of workers through Fenton
On a workday 4,279 residents head out to work, 605 work right here, and 6,056 people come in from elsewhere.
About 14,000 people are in Fenton on a workday afternoon, 15% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.36 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.
How many miles Fenton commutes
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 Fenton, most people drive to work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.8% across Michigan.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,142 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 4.4% of Fenton households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Fenton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Fenton is 1,531st of 2,695 U.S. towns of 8,000 to 16,000 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Grosse Pointe Farms MI | 9,735 | $161K | 2.5% | 1.9% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,529 | St. Stephens NC | 9,457 | $60K | 16.2% | 1.1% | 2% | B− |
| 1,530 | Perry IA | 8,208 | $69K | 8.9% | 3.6% | 23% | B− |
| 1,531 | Fenton MI | 11,774 | $80K | 6.9% | 8.7% | 12% | B− |
| 1,532 | Palmetto FL | 13,562 | $63K | 13.5% | 2.6% | 7% | B− |
| 1,533 | Fox Lake IL | 10,849 | $71K | 13.1% | 4.2% | 6% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,695 | Roma TX | 11,543 | $25K | 37.1% | 12.4% | 22% | 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 Fenton, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Work in the towns next to Fenton
The biggest share goes to Fenton Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Fenton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fenton | – | B− | B | 31 min | $80,000 |
| Fenton Township | 3% | A | C− | 30 min | $111,548 |
| Holly Township | under 2% | B− | C+ | 35 min | $75,276 |
| Tyrone Township | under 2% | A | D | 31 min | $99,770 |
| Lake Fenton | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Lake Fenton: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Fenton’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 Fenton: questions
What is the median household income in Fenton?
$80,000 (±$19,753) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Fenton?
6.9%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Fenton?
31 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Fenton work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Flint (6%, 16 mi), Flint Township (3%, 14 mi), Grand Blanc Township (3%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Fenton walkable?
Fenton is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 8.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Fenton without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Fenton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Fenton
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. 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.