Photo: brewbooks · CC BY-SA 2.0Households in Plainfield Township have higher incomes than those in 72% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 6.5% (Michigan 13.2%). For jobs and income Plainfield Township is better than 79% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 42% of U.S. towns (C+). About one in ten work in Plainfield Township itself; outside it, Grand Rapids draws the most (26%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Plainfield Township apart
Plainfield Township has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Plainfield Township went from 6,632 in 2011 to 11,598 in 2021, +75%. The jobs ↓
Plainfield Township and Grand Rapids trade workers both ways
Grand Rapids is the top workplace for Plainfield Township residents (26%) and also where the most people who work in Plainfield Township come from (14% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Inside Plainfield Township’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 84% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.1%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
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, poverty and unemployment, Plainfield Township could be anywhere from B to A.
Jobs in Plainfield Township: what the 11,598 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Plainfield Township, 2011 → 2021: 6,632 → 11,598. 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 Plainfield Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The places Plainfield Township commutes to
Where Plainfield Township clocks in
6% 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 workday shuffle in and out of Plainfield Township
On a workday 14,156 residents head out to work, 1,301 work right here, and 10,297 people come in from elsewhere.
About 31,000 people are in Plainfield Township on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.75 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.
Time on the road from Plainfield Township: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Plainfield Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 14,982 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.
How far Plainfield Township goes to work
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.
In Plainfield Township, the car does most of the work
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 17,299 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 42% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 3.2% of Plainfield Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Plainfield Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Plainfield Township is 477th among 1,287 U.S. towns of 24,000 to 47,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Northville Township MI | 31,399 | $151K | 3.1% | 2.9% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 119 | Bloomfield Township MI | 43,904 | $163K | 4.8% | 3.6% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 126 | Lyon Township MI | 26,867 | $146K | 4.8% | 3.1% | 6% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 475 | Eastern Goleta Valley CA | 28,295 | $146K | 7.9% | 3.9% | 9% | A− |
| 476 | Hercules CA | 26,326 | $129K | 5.6% | 6.4% | 5% | A− |
| 477 | Plainfield Township MI | 34,770 | $94K | 6.5% | 4.1% | 8% | A− |
| 478 | Indian Trail NC | 44,303 | $108K | 5.4% | 5.3% | 8% | A− |
| 479 | Springettsbury Township PA | 27,617 | $86K | 8.9% | 2.5% | 15% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,287 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Plainfield Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
The towns around Plainfield Township
The biggest share goes to Grand Rapids Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Plainfield Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plainfield Township | – | A− | C+ | 20 min | $94,218 |
| Alpine Township | under 2% | B− | C+ | 21 min | $67,807 |
| Cannon Township | under 2% | A | D | 26 min | $131,956 |
| Grand Rapids Township | 3% | A | B | 20 min | $123,246 |
| Rockford | 2% | B+ | B− | 25 min | $107,121 |
| Algoma Township | under 2% | A+ | C− | 28 min | $123,078 |
| Ada Township | 2% | A+ | B− | 20 min | $168,468 |
| Forest Hills | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Forest Hills: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Plainfield 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 Plainfield Township: questions
What is the median household income in Plainfield Township?
$94,218 (±$7,315) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Plainfield Township?
6.5%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Plainfield Township?
20 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Plainfield Township work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Grand Rapids (26%, 8 mi), Kentwood (6%, 13 mi), Walker (6%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Plainfield Township walkable?
Plainfield Township is more walkable than 42% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.8 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Plainfield Township without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Plainfield Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Plainfield 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.