Summit Township has higher unemployment (7.3%) than 84% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute from Summit Township lasts 19 minutes (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). Jobs and income earn Summit Township C+; getting around on foot earns it C. About one in ten work in Summit Township itself; outside it, Jackson draws the most (27%, 3 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Summit Township apart on work
A lot of Summit Township works one town over
44% of working residents work in a town that borders Summit Township: Jackson (27%), Blackman Township (11%) and Leoni Township (4%). Next door ↓
Commutes from Summit Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 24 across Michigan. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Michigan worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
The four measures behind Summit Township’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Summit Township is better than 43% of U.S. towns, #456 of 701 in Michigan. Job access by car holds Summit Township’s grade up (ahead of 66% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on the poverty rate.
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, Summit Township could be anywhere from C to B.
About 19 minutes to work from Summit Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Summit Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,911 commuters (the 9% 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.
Who leaves Summit Township for work, and who comes in
On a workday 7,984 residents head out to work, 867 work right here, and 5,219 people come in from elsewhere.
About 20,000 people are in Summit Township on a workday afternoon, 12% fewer than live here.
0.69 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.
Commuting out of Summit Township: the destinations
Where Summit Township clocks in
27% 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.
Jobs in Summit Township: what the 6,086 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Summit Township, 2011 → 2021: 5,517 → 6,086. 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 Summit Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where in the region Summit Township works
About 17% 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.
Driving is how Summit Township gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Summit Township is more walkable than 25% of U.S. towns, #447 of 701 in Michigan. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.7% 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 9,842 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). 3.2% of Summit Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Summit Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Summit Township is 1,252nd among 1,712 U.S. towns of 16,000 to 31,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 73 | Oakland Township MI | 20,631 | $167K | 2.7% | 3.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 118 | Hartland Township MI | 16,108 | $109K | 3.1% | 2.1% | 9% | A+ |
| 119 | Cascade Township MI | 20,201 | $136K | 4.6% | 2.6% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,250 | Carlisle PA | 22,693 | $62K | 15.1% | 4.4% | 22% | C+ |
| 1,251 | Lake Jackson TX | 27,803 | $91K | 11.7% | 8.0% | 11% | C+ |
| 1,252 | Summit Township MI | 22,705 | $66K | 7.7% | 7.3% | 10% | C+ |
| 1,253 | Vero Beach FL | 17,603 | $70K | 16.1% | 3.4% | 26% | C+ |
| 1,254 | Lansing IL | 28,068 | $76K | 14.0% | 9.8% | 7% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,712 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Summit Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
The towns next door employ 44% of Summit Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Summit Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summit Township | – | C+ | C | 19 min | $65,987 |
| Jackson | 27% | D | A− | 17 min | $44,558 |
| Spring Arbor Township | 2% | A− | B+ | 21 min | $87,316 |
| Blackman Township | 11% | B− | C | 18 min | $60,810 |
| Liberty Township | under 1% | B | D | 23 min | $102,969 |
| Napoleon Township | under 1% | B+ | B− | 28 min | $73,793 |
| Leoni Township | 4% | B | C | 23 min | $76,605 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Jackson. Darker towns draw more of Summit 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 Summit Township: questions
What is the median household income in Summit Township?
$65,987 (±$3,428) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Summit Township?
7.7%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Summit Township?
19 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Summit Township work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Jackson (27%, 3 mi), Blackman Township (11%, 7 mi), Leoni Township (4%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Summit Township walkable?
Summit Township is more walkable than 25% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.3 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Summit Township without a car?
<1% 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 Summit Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Summit 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.