Infirmary Building, Missouri State Hospital Number 3 · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0Households in Nevada have lower incomes than those in 94% of U.S. towns
27.8% of residents live below the poverty line, against 12.6% across Missouri. Nevada grades D for jobs and income and A for walkability. About two in five work in Nevada; the top destination outside it is Springfield (6%, 73 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Nevada apart
Commutes from Nevada are quick
The average trip to work takes 14 minutes, against 24 across Missouri. That’s about 77 hours a year less on the road than the typical Missouri worker. Time on the road ↓
Nevada is where the jobs are
Nevada has 5,122 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
39% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Fewer than half of Nevada workers earn over $40,000 a year
44% of Nevada’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, wherever they work, and 17% earn $1,250 a month or less. 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.
Where Nevada’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Nevada is better than 7% of U.S. towns, #234 of 247 in Missouri. Unemployment holds Nevada’s grade up (5.7%, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Nevada could be anywhere from D− to C−.
The trip to work from Nevada: about 14 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Nevada workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,063 commuters (the 9% 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.
How many people are in Nevada by day
On a workday 1,884 residents head out to work, 1,391 work right here, and 3,731 people come in from elsewhere.
About 10,000 people are in Nevada on a workday afternoon, 22% more than live here.
1.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
The distance from Nevada to work
About 39% 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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The kinds of work in Nevada
5,122 jobs are based in Nevada.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Nevada, 2013 → 2023: 5,629 → 5,122. 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 Nevada’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns that send workers to Nevada
Where Nevada clocks in
6% of workers
3% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Nevada
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Nevada is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns, #22 of 247 in Missouri. Both inputs place Nevada 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 3,352 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). 21.4% of Nevada households have no vehicle (Missouri 6.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Nevada’s commuters take a bus or train.
Nevada next to U.S. towns of 5,900 to 11,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,835 | Makaha HI | 10,066 | $65K | 25.0% | 10.0% | 1% | D |
| 2,836 | Albion MI | 7,474 | $40K | 25.2% | 13.5% | 17% | D |
| 2,837 | Nevada MO | 8,404 | $43K | 27.8% | 5.7% | 42% | D |
| 2,838 | Lawrence Township IL | 6,190 | $50K | 14.9% | 8.5% | 19% | D |
| 2,839 | West Livingston TX | 8,199 | $62K | 18.8% | 9.1% | 2% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 2,947 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Nevada, the top three, the last and three more from Missouri.
How Nevada compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Center Township (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Nevada workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada | – | D | A | 14 min | $42,813 |
| Center Township | 1% | C− | A− | 16 min | $49,962 |
| Washington Township | under 1% | C− | D | 19 min | $63,313 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Nevada’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 Nevada: questions
What is the median household income in Nevada?
$42,813 (±$5,440) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Nevada?
27.8%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Nevada?
14 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Nevada work?
42% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Springfield (6%, 73 mi), Kansas City (3%, 89 mi), Joplin (3%, 54 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Nevada walkable?
Nevada is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 8.9 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Nevada without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 21% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Nevada, from the people who make the trip.
More of Nevada
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.