Photo: Harrisburg_11 · CC BY 2.0Households in Harrisburg earn more than those in 95% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Harrisburg is better than 96% of U.S. towns (A+); for walkability it is more walkable than 79% of U.S. towns (A−). 3.7% of residents are in poverty (North Carolina 13.0%). 26% of workers have no commute at all, against 16% across North Carolina.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Harrisburg stands out on work
Much of Harrisburg works one town over
61% of working residents work in a town that borders Harrisburg: Charlotte (51%) and Concord (10%). Next door ↓
Harrisburg has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Harrisburg went from 3,648 in 2013 to 6,565 in 2023, +80%. The jobs ↓
A lot of Harrisburg works from home
26% of Harrisburg workers work from home, against 16% across North Carolina. Time on the road ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Harrisburg
68% of Harrisburg residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 48% of the jobs based in Harrisburg pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 95% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Harrisburg workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 25 across North Carolina. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 38 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Jobs & income in Harrisburg: the grade in detail
Household income is its strongest input ($148,254, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Harrisburg could be anywhere from A to A+.
What the 6,565 jobs in Harrisburg are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Harrisburg, 2013 → 2023: 3,648 → 6,565. 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 Harrisburg’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Harrisburg: about 30 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Harrisburg workers work from home, vs 16% across North Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,285 commuters (the 26% who work from home are left out). Across North Carolina: 85% 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.
The daily flow of workers through Harrisburg
On a workday 9,181 residents head out to work, 457 work right here, and 6,108 people come in from elsewhere.
About 18,000 people are in Harrisburg on a workday afternoon, 15% fewer than live here.
0.68 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.
51% of working residents work in Charlotte
Where Harrisburg clocks in
51% of workers
10% of workers
2% 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.
Miles to work from Harrisburg
About 16% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Harrisburg
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,890 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 0.2% of Harrisburg households have no vehicle (North Carolina 5.3%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of Harrisburg’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Harrisburg is 125th of 1,705 U.S. towns of 15,000 to 28,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Wolf Trap VA | 15,858 | $250K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 123 | Pewaukee WI | 16,375 | $108K | 3.7% | 2.6% | 7% | A+ |
| 124 | Scarsdale NY | 18,194 | $250K | 2.9% | 4.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 125 | Harrisburg NC | 20,742 | $148K | 3.7% | 3.0% | 5% | A+ |
| 126 | Vernon Township IN | 20,047 | $108K | 1.9% | 2.7% | 7% | A+ |
| 127 | Jacksonville Beach FL | 23,615 | $121K | 4.8% | 1.8% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 163 | Wendell NC | 19,687 | $96K | 3.2% | 1.3% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 394 | Knightdale NC | 23,144 | $103K | 5.3% | 3.4% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 457 | Davidson NC | 16,662 | $167K | 7.0% | 4.1% | 13% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,705 | 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 Harrisburg, the top three, the last and three more from North Carolina.
Next door is work for 61% of Harrisburg
The biggest share goes to Charlotte (51%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Harrisburg workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harrisburg | – | A+ | A− | 30 min | $148,254 |
| Concord | 10% | B | B | 27 min | $86,921 |
| Charlotte | 51% | B | A | 25 min | $82,068 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Harrisburg’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 Harrisburg: questions
What is the median household income in Harrisburg?
$148,254 (±$9,305) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,388 across North Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Harrisburg?
3.7%, against 13.0% across North Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Harrisburg?
30 minutes each way on average, against 25 across North Carolina and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Harrisburg work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Charlotte (51%, 12 mi), Concord (10%, 6 mi), Raleigh (2%, 118 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Harrisburg walkable?
Harrisburg is more walkable than 79% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Harrisburg without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and <1% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Harrisburg, from the people who make the trip.
More of Harrisburg
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.