Garfield Township has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.4 for each
Hardly any work in Garfield Township itself; outside it, Grand Rapids draws the most (11%, 34 miles). Garfield Township has 329 jobs; 922 of its residents have a job. Jobs and income earn Garfield Township B; getting around on foot earns it C.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Garfield Township stands out on work
Garfield Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Garfield Township is Grand Rapids, 34 miles away as the crow flies. 11% of working residents (99) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Garfield Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 35 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan. Over a year that’s about 268 hours of commuting, 84 more than the state’s typical 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 922 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Jobs & income in Garfield Township: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Garfield Township is better than 61% of U.S. towns, #309 of 701 in Michigan. Unemployment holds Garfield Township’s grade up (2.1%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 18% of U.S. towns). 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, Garfield Township could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
Short hops and long hauls from Garfield Township
About 16% 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.
Getting to work from Garfield Township takes about 35 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.2 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 952 commuters (the 8% 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.
In and out of Garfield Township on a workday
On a workday 913 residents head out to work, 9 work right here, and 320 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Garfield Township on a workday afternoon, 23% 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.
Where people from Garfield Township work
Where Garfield Township clocks in
8% 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.
Garfield Township is a services town
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Garfield Township, 2011 → 2021: 355 → 329. 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.
Most of Garfield Township commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Garfield Township is more walkable than 33% of U.S. towns, #384 of 701 in Michigan. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 3.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.8% across Michigan, on an EPA index of 4.4.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,038 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). 3.6% of Garfield Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Garfield Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 5,083 U.S. towns of 1,800 to 3,500, Garfield Township comes 1,686th 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 20 | Franklin MI | 3,134 | $194K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 136 | Village of Grosse Pointe Shores MI | 2,533 | $190K | 2.7% | 3.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 230 | Milton Township MI | 3,187 | $119K | 3.2% | 2.3% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,684 | Van Buren Township IN | 3,147 | $70K | 8.8% | 0.8% | 15% | B |
| 1,685 | Pine Grove Township MI | 3,083 | $69K | 7.4% | 2.1% | 3% | B |
| 1,686 | Garfield Township MI | 2,589 | $85K | 7.2% | 2.1% | 1% | B |
| 1,687 | Hagar Township MI | 3,173 | $67K | 9.4% | 1.3% | 5% | B |
| 1,688 | Gloucester Courthouse VA | 3,336 | $75K | 8.3% | 1.3% | 12% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 5,083 | 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 Garfield Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Around Garfield Township: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Newaygo (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Garfield Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garfield Township | – | B | C | 35 min | $84,688 |
| Newaygo | 7% | D− | B | 28 min | $40,689 |
| Ashland Township | under 3% | B− | B− | 30 min | $67,778 |
| Brooks Township | under 3% | B− | D | 34 min | $77,734 |
| Sheridan Township | under 3% | B− | C+ | 21 min | $76,042 |
| Sherman Township | under 3% | C− | D | 24 min | $67,065 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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?
$84,688 (±$14,304) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Garfield Township?
7.2%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Garfield Township?
35 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Garfield Township work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Grand Rapids (11%, 34 mi), Fremont (8%, 5 mi), Newaygo (7%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Garfield Township walkable?
Garfield Township is more walkable than 33% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 4.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Garfield Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
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.