With 0.6 jobs for every working resident, most of Filer Township works elsewhere
Only 7% stay in Filer Township for work; outside it, Manistee Township is the main destination (22%, 7 miles). 439 jobs are based in Filer Township for 775 working residents. Filer Township grades B− for jobs and income and C− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Filer Township
Fewer jobs are based in Filer Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Filer Township fell from 1,422 in 2011 to 439 in 2021, −69%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
A big share show a job far from home
30% 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 ↓
Commutes from Filer Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 24 across Michigan. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Michigan worker. Time on the road ↓
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; with 775 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Filer Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Filer Township is better than 51% of U.S. towns. The poverty rate holds Filer Township’s grade up (3.8%, U.S. 12.5%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 9% of U.S. towns). It also does well on unemployment.
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 fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Filer Township could be anywhere from C to B+.
What Filer Township’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Filer Township, 2011 → 2021: 1,422 → 439. 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 Filer Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Filer Township, by distance
About 30% 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.
Commuting from Filer Township: about 19 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Filer Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,068 commuters (the 7% 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 people are in Filer Township by day
On a workday 724 residents head out to work, 51 work right here, and 388 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Filer Township on a workday afternoon, 15% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
The places Filer Township commutes to
Where Filer Township clocks in
22% of workers
16% 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 commute in Filer Township is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Filer Township is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Filer Township near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,150 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). 2.8% of Filer Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Filer Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Filer Township next to U.S. towns of 1,600 to 3,100: 2,202nd of 5,328 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 93 | Caledonia MI | 1,778 | $106K | 3.7% | 0.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 134 | Village of Grosse Pointe Shores MI | 2,533 | $190K | 2.7% | 3.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 216 | Wheatfield Township MI | 1,659 | $117K | 1.9% | 2.7% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,200 | Tullytown PA | 2,228 | $65K | 13.6% | 4.7% | 4% | B− |
| 2,201 | Windsor VA | 2,947 | $69K | 11.7% | 3.6% | 7% | B− |
| 2,202 | Filer Township MI | 2,289 | $75K | 3.8% | 3.8% | 7% | B− |
| 2,203 | Nessel Township MN | 1,960 | $86K | 6.3% | 2.9% | 1% | B− |
| 2,204 | Grafton NY | 2,098 | $101K | 8.0% | 0.9% | 3% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,328 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Filer Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Work next door: 23% of Filer Township’s workers
The biggest share goes to Manistee (16%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Filer Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filer Township | – | B− | C− | 19 min | $74,675 |
| Manistee | 16% | D | A− | 15 min | $60,541 |
| Stronach Township | 7% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Grant Township | under 2% | — | — | 21 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Stronach Township and Grant Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Filer 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 Filer Township: questions
What is the median household income in Filer Township?
$74,675 (±$6,713) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Filer Township?
3.8%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Filer Township?
19 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Filer Township work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Manistee Township (22%, 7 mi), Manistee (16%, 3 mi), Stronach Township (7%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Filer Township walkable?
Filer Township is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Filer Township without a car?
<1% 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 Filer Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Filer 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. 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.