Packard Proving Grounds Gateway Complex · Photo: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 3.0Shelby Township has higher household incomes than 69% of U.S. towns
Shelby Township grades A− for jobs and income and B− for walkability. Below the poverty line: 8.1% of residents (Michigan 13.2%). About one in ten work in Shelby Township; the top destination outside it is Troy (10%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Shelby Township: the figures worth knowing
The better-paid jobs are outside Shelby Township
62% of Shelby Township residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 44% of the jobs based in Shelby Township pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 91% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
32% of the jobs based in Shelby Township are held by workers 29 or younger, against 22% of Shelby Township’s own working residents. 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.
Inside Shelby Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Shelby Township is better than 76% of U.S. towns, #186 of 701 in Michigan. Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 89% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.2%, 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 three years behind.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Shelby Township could be anywhere from B+ to A−.
In Shelby Township, 29% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
26,046 jobs are based in Shelby Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Shelby Township, 2011 → 2021: 22,013 → 26,046. 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 Shelby Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes Shelby Township
On a workday 29,738 residents head out to work, 2,846 work right here, and 23,200 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 (0.80 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.
The places Shelby Township commutes to
Where Shelby Township clocks in
10% of workers
8% of workers
8% 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 Shelby Township: about 25 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Shelby Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 32,526 commuters (the 16% 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.
Shelby Township’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Getting around Shelby Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Shelby Township is more walkable than 47% of U.S. towns, #280 of 701 in Michigan. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.8% across Michigan.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 38,567 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 5.1% of Shelby Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Shelby Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Shelby Township places 200th of 571 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 56,000 to 109,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 50 | Canton Township MI | 99,714 | $121K | 5.5% | 3.6% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 67 | Rochester Hills MI | 77,539 | $121K | 5.2% | 4.1% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 76 | Troy MI | 88,733 | $120K | 5.4% | 4.4% | 20% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 198 | Renton WA | 104,975 | $100K | 8.1% | 4.9% | 12% | A− |
| 199 | Du Page Township IL | 88,043 | $105K | 8.3% | 5.4% | 14% | A− |
| 200 | Shelby Township MI | 80,415 | $91K | 8.1% | 4.2% | 9% | A− |
| 201 | Abington Township PA | 58,656 | $104K | 7.5% | 5.7% | 9% | A− |
| 202 | Nashua NH | 92,435 | $96K | 7.8% | 4.2% | 28% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 571 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 50% | 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 Shelby Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Work next door: 12% of Shelby Township’s workers
The biggest share goes to Sterling Heights (8%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Shelby Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shelby Township | – | A− | B− | 25 min | $91,012 |
| Utica | under 3% | B+ | B+ | 24 min | $58,718 |
| Rochester Hills | 4% | A | B | 24 min | $120,694 |
| Sterling Heights | 8% | B | B− | 25 min | $79,909 |
| Macomb Township | under 3% | A | B− | 29 min | $120,652 |
| Washington Township | under 3% | A− | C | 30 min | $97,723 |
| Rochester | under 3% | A+ | B | 25 min | $111,750 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Shelby 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 Shelby Township: questions
What is the median household income in Shelby Township?
$91,012 (±$4,888) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Shelby Township?
8.1%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Shelby Township?
25 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Shelby Township work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Troy (10%, 8 mi), Sterling Heights (8%, 6 mi), Warren (8%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Shelby Township walkable?
Shelby Township is more walkable than 47% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.7 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Shelby Township without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Shelby Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Shelby 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.