Den Svenska Evangeliska Lutherska Christdala Forsamlingen · Photo: Elkman · CC BY-SA 3.0Forest Township’s household incomes are higher than in 90% of U.S. towns
Hardly any work in Forest Township; the top destination outside it is Northfield (23%, 9 miles). Poverty touches 10.4% of residents, where Minnesota as a whole has 9.3%. Forest Township grades B+ for jobs and income and C− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Forest Township, in brief
Forest Township is a place people come home to
There are 97 jobs based in Forest Township, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Forest Township has about 800 people in it, 42% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Forest Township and Northfield trade workers both ways
Northfield is the top workplace for Forest Township residents (23%) and also where the most people who work in Forest Township come from (18% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Forest Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 23 across Minnesota. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 54 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 679 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Income, poverty and work: Forest Township’s grade explained
On income, poverty and job access, Forest Township is better than 70% of U.S. towns. Household income holds Forest Township’s grade up ($125,938, U.S. $80,734); the poverty rate pulls it down. It also does well on job access by car.
Unemployment (4.2%) is left out: Forest Township’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Forest Township could be anywhere from B− to A.
Who works in Forest Township, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 678 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 96 people come in from elsewhere.
About 800 people are in Forest Township on a workday afternoon, 42% fewer than live here.
0.14 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 2023, primary jobs.
Where Forest Township goes to work
Where Forest Township clocks in
8% of workers
4% 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.
Time on the road from Forest Township: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Forest Township workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 536 commuters (the 19% who work from home are left out). Across Minnesota: 84% drive alone, 2% 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: 35% of Forest Township’s jobs are in goods
97 jobs are based in Forest Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Forest Township, 2013 → 2023: 90 → 97. 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 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Forest Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Forest Township
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Getting around Forest Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Forest Township is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Forest 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 663 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). 1.3% of Forest Township households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Forest Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Forest Township is 1,033rd among 5,877 U.S. towns of 1,000 to 1,900
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 9 | Medicine Lake MN | 1,342 | $184K | 2.7% | 0.0% | 0% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 33 | Dellwood MN | 1,148 | $225K | 4.1% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 35 | Louisville Township MN | 1,361 | $143K | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,031 | Kings Mills OH | 1,175 | $140K | 19.1% | 2.0% | 1% | B+ |
| 1,032 | Spring Point Township IL | 1,305 | $90K | 2.2% | 0.0% | 1% | B+ |
| 1,033 | Forest Township MN | 1,377 | $126K | 10.4% | 4.2% | <1% | B+ |
| 1,034 | Winfield Township NJ | 1,450 | $64K | 8.5% | 8.4% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,035 | Palestine IN | 1,085 | $92K | 4.5% | 5.3% | 0% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5,877 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | 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 Forest Township, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
Forest Township and the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Forest Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Township | – | B+ | C− | 30 min | $125,938 |
| Erin Township | under 3% | — | — | 40 min | — |
| Bridgewater Township | under 3% | A | C− | 26 min | $121,000 |
| Webster Township | under 3% | A | C− | 27 min | $119,671 |
| Wells Township | under 3% | B+ | C | 25 min | $87,574 |
Same-state neighbors only. Erin Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Forest 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 2023, 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 Forest Township: questions
What is the median household income in Forest Township?
$125,938 (±$16,796) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Forest Township?
10.4%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Forest Township?
30 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Forest Township work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Northfield (23%, 9 mi), Faribault (8%, 8 mi), Minneapolis (4%, 38 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Forest Township walkable?
Forest Township is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.0 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Forest Township 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 Forest Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Forest Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, 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.