Photo: JDMcGreg · CC BY-SA 3.0Manchester’s household incomes are higher than in 75% of U.S. towns
23% of workers have no commute at all; Missouri has 13%. 6.4% of residents live below the poverty line, against 12.6% across Missouri. For jobs and income Manchester is better than 83% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (B−).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The short version on getting to work from Manchester
Manchester draws workers from far and wide
The 5,232 jobs in Manchester are filled from a wide area. Manchester’s own residents hold 5% and the ten next-biggest home towns 28%; the other 67% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
A lot of Manchester works from home
23% of Manchester workers work from home, against 13% across Missouri. Time on the road ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Manchester
69% of Manchester residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 48% of the jobs based in Manchester pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 97% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
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.
Why Manchester gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 91% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.1%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Manchester could be anywhere from B to A+.
The places Manchester commutes to
Where Manchester clocks in
13% 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.
Each way, about 21 minutes from Manchester
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Manchester workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,137 commuters (the 23% who work from home are left out). Across Missouri: 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.
Jobs in Manchester: what the 5,232 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Manchester, 2013 → 2023: 5,360 → 5,232. 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 Manchester’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who commutes out of Manchester, and who commutes in
On a workday 8,022 residents head out to work, 248 work right here, and 4,984 people come in from elsewhere.
About 15,000 people are in Manchester on a workday afternoon, 17% fewer than live here.
0.63 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.
Miles to work from Manchester
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.
In Manchester, most people drive to work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.2% across Missouri.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,227 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 10% 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 0.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 46% 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). 4.4% of Manchester households have no vehicle (Missouri 6.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Manchester’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 13,000 to 24,000, Manchester ranks 513th of 1,822 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Dardenne Prairie MO | 15,032 | $153K | 1.3% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 144 | Creve Coeur MO | 18,480 | $127K | 6.1% | 2.6% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 202 | Webster Groves MO | 23,450 | $115K | 4.2% | 3.7% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 511 | Atlantic Beach FL | 13,245 | $119K | 7.7% | 3.2% | 8% | A− |
| 512 | South Middleton Township PA | 17,792 | $92K | 6.4% | 2.6% | 12% | A− |
| 513 | Manchester MO | 18,069 | $98K | 6.4% | 4.1% | 3% | A− |
| 514 | Bridgetown OH | 13,464 | $81K | 5.6% | 2.6% | 4% | A− |
| 515 | Bryant AR | 22,815 | $83K | 5.6% | 2.6% | 10% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,822 | 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 Manchester, the top three, the last and three more from Missouri.
Work in the towns next to Manchester
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Manchester workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester | – | A− | B− | 21 min | $97,801 |
| Winchester | under 3% | A | B− | 19 min | $87,917 |
| Twin Oaks | under 3% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Valley Park | under 3% | B | C− | 22 min | $67,898 |
| Ballwin | under 3% | A | B− | 26 min | $124,626 |
Same-state neighbors only. Twin Oaks: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Manchester’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 Manchester: questions
What is the median household income in Manchester?
$97,801 (±$19,572) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Manchester?
6.4%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Manchester?
21 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 23% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Manchester work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are St. Louis (13%, 15 mi), Chesterfield (8%, 7 mi), Maryland Heights (5%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Manchester walkable?
Manchester is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 9.2 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Manchester without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Manchester, from the people who make the trip.
More of Manchester
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.