More people are out of work in Odessa Township (5.2%) than in 64% of U.S. towns
Odessa Township grades B− for jobs and income and B− for walkability. About one in seven work in Odessa Township itself; outside it, Grand Rapids draws the most (9%, 28 miles). The trip to work takes 27 minutes on average (Michigan 24, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Odessa Township apart
Odessa Township trades workers with the towns around it
Odessa Township has about as many jobs (1,355) as working residents (1,525), but they are mostly different people: 1,280 residents leave for work each day while 1,110 people come in. Only 18% of the jobs in Odessa Township are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Odessa Township makes and builds things
50% of the jobs based in Odessa Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Odessa Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 31%. The jobs ↓
Odessa Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Odessa Township is Grand Rapids, 28 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (142) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
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.
Why Odessa Township gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Odessa Township is better than 50% of U.S. towns, #400 of 701 in Michigan. Job access by car holds Odessa Township’s grade up (ahead of 56% 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, Odessa Township could be anywhere from C to A−.
In and out of Odessa Township on a workday
On a workday 1,280 residents head out to work, 245 work right here, and 1,110 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 (0.89 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.
Making and building: 50% of jobs based in Odessa Township
1,355 jobs are based in Odessa Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Odessa Township, 2011 → 2021: 1,040 → 1,355. 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 Odessa Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Odessa Township, by distance
About 18% 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 out of Odessa Township: the destinations
Where Odessa Township 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.
Odessa Township’s commute takes about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Odessa Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,629 commuters (the 17% 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.
The commute in Odessa Township is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Odessa Township is more walkable than 51% of U.S. towns, #248 of 701 in Michigan. Both inputs place Odessa 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 1,952 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). 6.3% of Odessa Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Odessa Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 2,800 to 5,400, Odessa Township ranks 2,139th of 4,177 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Franklin MI | 3,134 | $194K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 120 | Vergennes Township MI | 4,968 | $113K | 1.5% | 0.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 125 | Ann Arbor Township MI | 4,506 | $165K | 7.2% | 0.5% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,137 | Northwoods MO | 3,579 | $45K | 24.8% | 1.4% | 2% | B− |
| 2,138 | Unalaska AK | 4,306 | $132K | 9.6% | 4.3% | — | B− |
| 2,139 | Odessa Township MI | 3,966 | $78K | 9.0% | 5.2% | 16% | B− |
| 2,140 | Val Verde Park TX | 3,139 | $62K | 10.4% | 0.0% | <1% | B− |
| 2,141 | Minerva OH | 3,697 | $54K | 13.0% | 1.4% | 17% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,177 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Odessa Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Odessa Township and its neighbors
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Odessa Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odessa Township | – | B− | B− | 27 min | $78,281 |
| Woodland Township | under 3% | B− | B− | 25 min | $74,489 |
| Sebewa Township | under 3% | A− | D | 30 min | $95,500 |
| Campbell Township | under 3% | A− | C | 27 min | $85,128 |
| Berlin Township | under 3% | B+ | D− | 22 min | $74,250 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Odessa 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 Odessa Township: questions
What is the median household income in Odessa Township?
$78,281 (±$7,170) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Odessa Township?
9.0%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Odessa Township?
27 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Odessa Township work?
16% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Grand Rapids (9%, 28 mi), Ionia (4%, 12 mi), Lansing (3%, 30 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Odessa Township walkable?
Odessa Township is more walkable than 51% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 6.5 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Odessa Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Odessa Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Odessa 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.