Jobs, income and commuting in Mentor Township, MI
The trip to work takes 29 minutes on average (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). Only 4% stay in Mentor Township for work; outside it, Petoskey is the main destination (7%, 14 miles). 6% of workers have no commute at all (Michigan 14%).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Mentor Township
A big share show a job far from home
36% 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 ↓
Mentor Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 29 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan. Over a year that’s about 222 hours of commuting, 38 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 311 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How far Mentor Township’s workers travel
About 36% 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 Mentor Township: about 29 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Mentor Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 335 commuters (the 6% 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 leaves Mentor Township for work, and who comes in
On a workday 298 residents head out to work, 13 work right here, and 341 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 (1.14 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.
Commuting out of Mentor Township: the destinations
Where Mentor Township clocks in
7% 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 Mentor Township
354 jobs are based in Mentor Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Mentor Township, 2011 → 2021: 65 → 354. 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 Mentor Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns around Mentor Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Mentor Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mentor Township | – | — | — | 29 min | $60,208 |
| Tuscarora Township | 4% | C+ | D | 28 min | $66,042 |
| Ellis Township | under 3% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Wilmot Township | under 3% | — | — | 27 min | — |
| Indian River | under 3% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| Springvale Township | under 3% | B | D | 26 min | $102,083 |
Same-state neighbors only. Ellis Township and Wilmot Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Indian River: 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 Tuscarora Township. Darker towns draw more of Mentor 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 Mentor Township: questions
What is the median household income in Mentor Township?
$60,208 (±$13,104) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Mentor Township?
16.5%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Mentor Township?
29 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Mentor Township work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Petoskey (7%, 14 mi), Tuscarora Township (4%, 7 mi), Gaylord (4%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Mentor Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Mentor Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Mentor 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.