Photo: Phoenix-Five · CC BY-SA 4.0Unemployment in Garfield Township (3.3%) is lower than in 65% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Garfield Township is better than 41% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 85% of U.S. towns (A). Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 7.2 in Detroit. About one in five stay in Garfield Township for work; outside it, Traverse City is the main destination (39%, 2 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Garfield Township apart on work
Much of Garfield Township works one town over
46% of working residents work in a town that borders Garfield Township: Traverse City (39%), Blair Township (3%) and East Bay Township (3%). Next door ↓
Most Garfield Township residents work close to home
67% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
Commutes from Garfield 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 ↓
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 four measures behind Garfield Township’s grade
Unemployment holds Garfield Township’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (17.4%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on job access by car.
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, Garfield Township could be anywhere from C− to B.
How far Garfield Township’s workers travel
About 22% 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.
About 17 minutes to work from Garfield Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Garfield Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,552 commuters (the 13% 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.
Who commutes out of Garfield Township, and who commutes in
On a workday 6,315 residents head out to work, 1,333 work right here, and 10,079 people come in from elsewhere.
About 23,000 people are in Garfield Township on a workday afternoon, 19% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.49 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.
The towns that employ Garfield Township’s residents
Where Garfield Township clocks in
39% of workers
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.
The kinds of work in Garfield Township
11,412 jobs are based in Garfield Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Garfield Township, 2011 → 2021: 13,267 → 11,412. 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 Garfield Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Garfield Township is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,778 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 27% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 6% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 45% 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). 9.2% of Garfield Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Garfield Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Garfield Township ranks: 1,340th of 1,860 U.S. towns of 14,000 to 27,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | Southfield Township MI | 14,671 | $185K | 4.7% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 63 | Berkley MI | 15,145 | $116K | 4.5% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,338 | Lilburn GA | 16,369 | $64K | 22.9% | 5.1% | 4% | C+ |
| 1,339 | Indiana PA | 14,697 | $41K | 21.7% | 9.6% | 17% | C+ |
| 1,340 | Garfield Township MI | 19,698 | $66K | 17.4% | 3.3% | 17% | C+ |
| 1,341 | Somerton AZ | 14,934 | $74K | 13.8% | 3.7% | 10% | C+ |
| 1,342 | Machesney Park IL | 22,805 | $75K | 13.7% | 7.1% | 7% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,860 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Garfield Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
The towns next door employ 46% of Garfield Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Garfield Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garfield Township | – | C+ | A | 17 min | $66,082 |
| Traverse City | 39% | C+ | A+ | 17 min | $74,087 |
| Blair Township | 3% | C+ | C− | 19 min | $71,582 |
| Long Lake Township | 1% | A− | D | 23 min | $96,220 |
| Chums Corner | under 1% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| East Bay Township | 3% | B | B− | 20 min | $85,291 |
Same-state neighbors only. Chums Corner: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Traverse City. Darker towns draw more of Garfield 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 Garfield Township: questions
What is the median household income in Garfield Township?
$66,082 (±$6,711) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Garfield Township?
17.4%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Garfield Township?
17 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Garfield Township work?
17% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Traverse City (39%, 2 mi), East Bay Township (3%, 6 mi), Blair Township (3%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Garfield Township walkable?
Garfield Township is more walkable than 85% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 9.2 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Garfield Township without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. 6% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Garfield Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Garfield 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.