More than half of Soo Township’s working residents commute to Sault Ste. Marie
The average commute takes 17 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. Soo Township grades B for jobs and income and D for walkability. Only 6% work in Soo Township; the top destination outside it is Sault Ste. Marie (55%, 17 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Soo Township
Most Soo Township residents work close to home
65% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
Commutes from Soo Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 24 across Michigan. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Michigan worker. Time on the road ↓
Soo Township has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Soo Township went from 328 in 2011 to 465 in 2021, +42%. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Soo Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Soo Township is better than 58% of U.S. towns, #333 of 701 in Michigan. The poverty rate holds Soo Township’s grade up (5.4%, U.S. 12.5%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 9% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income 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 rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Soo Township could be anywhere from C to A−.
How far it is to work from Soo Township
About 21% 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.
Getting to work from Soo Township takes about 17 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Soo Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,283 commuters (the 8% 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.
A place that makes things: 31% of Soo Township’s jobs are in goods
465 jobs are based in Soo Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Soo Township, 2011 → 2021: 328 → 465. 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 Soo Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Soo Township by day and by night
On a workday 1,044 residents head out to work, 71 work right here, and 394 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,300 people are in Soo Township on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
0.42 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
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 towns that employ Soo Township’s residents
Where Soo Township clocks in
55% of workers
3% 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.
Getting around Soo Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Soo Township is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns, #567 of 701 in Michigan. Both inputs place Soo 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 1,393 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). 4.2% of Soo Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Soo Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Soo Township places 1,817th of 4,618 on jobs and income 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% | 2% | 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% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,815 | East Brookfield MA | 2,231 | $81K | 7.1% | 5.1% | 6% | B |
| 1,816 | Sheffield MA | 3,314 | $92K | 6.4% | 3.5% | 27% | B |
| 1,817 | Soo Township MI | 2,983 | $79K | 5.4% | 2.5% | 6% | B |
| 1,818 | Mechanic Township OH | 3,256 | $91K | 7.2% | 3.8% | 6% | B |
| 1,819 | Laguna Beach FL | 3,830 | $77K | 5.5% | 2.8% | 4% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 4,618 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 12% | 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 Soo Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
61% of Soo Township works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Soo Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soo Township | – | B | D | 17 min | $79,107 |
| Raber Township | under 1% | — | — | 37 min | — |
| Bruce Township | 1% | B− | D− | 30 min | $85,950 |
| Sugar Island Township | under 1% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Sault Ste. Marie | 55% | C− | A | 12 min | $55,328 |
| Bay Mills Township | 3% | D | C+ | 19 min | $60,972 |
| Pickford Township | under 1% | B | C | 24 min | $99,688 |
| Dafter Township | 2% | D | C | 15 min | $65,588 |
Same-state neighbors only. Raber Township and Sugar Island Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Sault Ste. Marie. Darker towns draw more of Soo 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 Soo Township: questions
What is the median household income in Soo Township?
$79,107 (±$16,496) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Soo Township?
5.4%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Soo Township?
17 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Soo Township work?
6% work in town.
Is Soo Township walkable?
Soo Township is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.2 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Soo Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Soo Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Soo 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.