Otsego Lake Township has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.1 for each
Hardly any work in Otsego Lake Township itself; outside it, Gaylord draws the most (30%, 8 miles). 95 jobs are based in Otsego Lake Township, against 1,065 working residents. Otsego Lake Township grades C+ 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 sets Otsego Lake Township apart on work
Otsego Lake Township is a place people come home to
There are 95 jobs based in Otsego Lake Township, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Otsego Lake Township has about 2,000 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
30% of Otsego Lake Township works in Gaylord
322 working residents, 30%, have their main job in Gaylord, 7.9 miles away. That’s 30 times as many as work in Otsego Lake Township itself. The commute map ↓
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 ↓
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 Otsego Lake Township’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Otsego Lake Township is better than 36% of U.S. towns, #520 of 701 in Michigan. Unemployment holds Otsego Lake Township’s grade up (4.1%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 13% of U.S. towns).
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is three years behind.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Otsego Lake Township could be anywhere from D to A−.
How many people are in Otsego Lake Township by day
On a workday 1,055 residents head out to work, 10 work right here, and 85 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Otsego Lake Township on a workday afternoon, 33% 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 Otsego Lake Township goes to work
Where Otsego Lake Township clocks in
Lines 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.
How far it is to work from Otsego Lake Township
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.
In Otsego Lake Township, 54% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Otsego Lake Township, 2011 → 2021: 56 → 95. 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 Otsego Lake Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Otsego Lake Township spends getting to work: about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Otsego Lake Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,229 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.
In Otsego Lake Township, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Otsego Lake Township is more walkable than 18% of U.S. towns, #517 of 701 in Michigan. Both inputs place Otsego Lake 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 1,418 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). 0.0% of Otsego Lake Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Otsego Lake Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
2,934th of 4,618: where Otsego Lake Township ranks among U.S. towns of 2,100 to 4,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Franklin MI | 3,134 | $194K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 137 | Village of Grosse Pointe Shores MI | 2,533 | $190K | 2.7% | 3.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 232 | Milton Township MI | 3,187 | $119K | 3.2% | 2.3% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,932 | Monroe Township IN | 3,847 | $54K | 16.9% | 0.6% | 40% | C+ |
| 2,933 | Wellfleet MA | 3,707 | $118K | 9.2% | 9.0% | 27% | C+ |
| 2,934 | Otsego Lake Township MI | 2,968 | $73K | 10.2% | 4.1% | 1% | C+ |
| 2,935 | Suttons Bay Township MI | 2,959 | $116K | 10.3% | 10.5% | 23% | C+ |
| 2,936 | Fairfield Harbour NC | 2,948 | $73K | 7.1% | 4.5% | 1% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,618 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 0% | 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 Otsego Lake Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
The towns around Otsego Lake Township
The biggest share goes to Bagley Township (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Otsego Lake Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otsego Lake Township | – | C+ | C− | 22 min | $73,073 |
| Bagley Township | 5% | B | C− | 18 min | $77,045 |
| Chester Township | under 2% | C+ | C− | 25 min | $73,707 |
| Maple Forest Township | under 2% | — | — | 38 min | — |
| Hayes Township | under 2% | C | D− | 26 min | $77,629 |
Same-state neighbors only. Maple Forest Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Otsego Lake 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 Otsego Lake Township: questions
What is the median household income in Otsego Lake Township?
$73,073 (±$22,710) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Otsego Lake Township?
10.2%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Otsego Lake Township?
22 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Otsego Lake Township work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Gaylord (30%, 8 mi), Bagley Township (5%, 5 mi), Livingston Township (4%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Otsego Lake Township walkable?
Otsego Lake Township is more walkable than 18% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.2 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Otsego Lake Township without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Otsego Lake Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Otsego Lake 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.