Penn Township has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.6 for each
Only 5% work in Penn Township itself; outside it, Elkhart draws the most (17%, 17 miles). Employers in Penn Township report 411 jobs; 721 of its residents have a job. Penn Township grades B− 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
Work in Penn Township: the figures worth knowing
Many Penn Township workers cross into Indiana
48% of Penn Township workers work outside Michigan, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Elkhart (17%), South Bend (5%) and Mishawaka (3%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Penn Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 34 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan. Over a year that’s about 261 hours of commuting, 77 more than the state’s typical worker. Every town next door averages less (23 to 31 minutes). Time on the road ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
40% of the jobs in Penn Township are in trade, transport and utilities, against 21% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
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 721 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The figures behind Penn Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty and job access, Penn Township is better than 52% of U.S. towns. Household income holds Penn Township’s grade up ($83,897, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 40% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
Unemployment (8.2%) is left out: Penn Township’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
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 and poverty, Penn Township could be anywhere from C to B+.
Where Penn Township goes to work
Where Penn Township clocks in
17% of workers
5% 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 trip to work from Penn Township: about 34 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Penn Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 642 commuters (the 10% 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.
67% of the jobs in Penn Township pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Penn Township, 2011 → 2021: 253 → 411. 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 Penn Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Penn Township
On a workday 687 residents head out to work, 34 work right here, and 377 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,500 people are in Penn Township on a workday afternoon, 18% 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.
The distance from Penn Township to work
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.
Most of Penn Township commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Penn Township is more walkable than 22% of U.S. towns. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 2.0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.8% across Michigan, on an EPA index of 4.3.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 717 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). 2.8% of Penn Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Penn Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 6,085 U.S. towns of 1,200 to 2,400, Penn Township comes 2,175th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Plandome NY | 1,482 | $250K | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Hewlett Harbor NY | 1,332 | $250K | 1.9% | 7.2% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 104 | Caledonia MI | 1,778 | $106K | 3.7% | 0.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 218 | Wheatfield Township MI | 1,659 | $117K | 1.9% | 2.7% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 263 | Sylvan Lake MI | 1,685 | $106K | 5.4% | 2.9% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,173 | Milo Township MN | 1,579 | $84K | 8.2% | 0.2% | 2% | B− |
| 2,174 | Ogden KS | 1,655 | $68K | 5.9% | 6.0% | 1% | B− |
| 2,175 | Penn Township MI | 1,768 | $84K | 9.3% | 8.2% | 5% | B− |
| 2,176 | Canosia Township MN | 2,187 | $88K | 4.9% | 8.1% | 3% | B− |
| 2,177 | Barrington NY | 1,526 | $91K | 5.9% | 0.0% | 4% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 6,085 | Paraje NM | 1,333 | $33K | 61.7% | 0.0% | 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 Penn Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Around Penn Township: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to LaGrange Township (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Penn Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn Township | – | B− | C− | 34 min | $83,897 |
| Newberg Township | under 2% | C+ | D | 27 min | $72,167 |
| LaGrange Township | 4% | C | B+ | 23 min | $58,786 |
| Volinia Township | under 2% | C+ | D− | 31 min | $78,750 |
| Calvin Township | under 2% | B | D | 25 min | $80,813 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Penn 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 Penn Township: questions
What is the median household income in Penn Township?
$83,897 (±$15,656) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Penn Township?
9.3%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Penn Township?
34 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Penn Township work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Elkhart (17%, 17 mi), South Bend (5%, 25 mi), LaGrange Township (4%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Penn Township walkable?
Penn Township is more walkable than 22% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 4.3 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Penn Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Penn Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Penn 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.