Richland at work: jobs, income and the commute
A typical one-way commute lasts 24 minutes, next to 24 for Michigan and 26 for the U.S. Only 2% work in Richland; the top destination outside it is Kalamazoo (19%, 9 miles). 366 jobs are based in Richland; 386 of its residents have a job.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Richland apart
Many jobs in Richland pay little
31% of the jobs based in Richland pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 30% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. The jobs ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Richland
62% of Richland residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 40% of the jobs based in Richland pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. 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 386 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The kinds of work in Richland
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Richland, 2011 → 2021: 260 → 366. 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 Richland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who works in Richland, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 379 residents head out to work, 7 work right here, and 359 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 (0.95 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.
Where people from Richland work
Where Richland clocks in
19% of workers
10% 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.
How long Richland spends getting to work: about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Richland workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 404 commuters (the 14% 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 Richland’s workers travel
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.
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 Richland: questions
What is the median household income in Richland?
$95,104 (±$28,224) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Richland?
7.8%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Richland?
24 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Richland work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Kalamazoo (19%, 9 mi), Battle Creek (10%, 13 mi), Portage (9%, 14 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Richland 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 Richland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Richland
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.