Household incomes in West Marion trail those of 97% of U.S. towns
The two grades for West Marion are D for jobs and income and C− for walkability. Poverty touches 15.1% of residents, against 13.0% across North Carolina. For 2% of workers, the job is at home, against 16% across North Carolina.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in West Marion: the figures worth knowing
West Marion is a place people come home to
There are 76 jobs based in West Marion, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday West Marion has about 600 people in it, 44% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
West Marion and Marion trade workers both ways
Marion is the top workplace for West Marion residents (22%) and also where the most people who work in West Marion come from (16% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Few West Marion workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 16% across North Carolina. Almost everyone here travels to a job. 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 544 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in West Marion
On income, poverty and job access, West Marion is better than 12% of U.S. towns. Job access by car holds West Marion’s grade up (ahead of 35% of U.S. towns); household income pulls it down ($36,715, U.S. $80,734).
Unemployment (0.0%) is left out: West Marion’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, West Marion could be anywhere from D− to B−.
West Marion quiets down on a workday
On a workday 542 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 74 people come in from elsewhere.
About 600 people are in West Marion on a workday afternoon, 44% 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.
22% of working residents work in Marion
Where West Marion clocks in
22% of workers
6% 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.
About 19 minutes each way for West Marion’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Marion workers work from home, vs 16% across North Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 370 commuters (the 2% 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.
63% of the jobs in West Marion make or build things
76 jobs are based in West Marion.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Marion, 2013 → 2023: 73 → 76. 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 West Marion’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from West Marion
About 26% 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.
Most of West Marion commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, West Marion is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.9% across North Carolina.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 377 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 West Marion households have no vehicle (North Carolina 5.3%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of West Marion’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, West Marion is 2,454th of 3,133 U.S. towns of 700 to 1,400
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 158 | Montreat NC | 1,024 | $116K | 0.0% | 9.6% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 263 | Stem NC | 1,023 | $96K | 3.0% | 1.1% | 0% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 302 | Brandywine Bay NC | 1,313 | $105K | 1.2% | 12.1% | 0% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,452 | Hill Township MI | 1,273 | $64K | 13.9% | 5.1% | 2% | D |
| 2,453 | Sunfish Township OH | 1,173 | $57K | 12.3% | 0.6% | 1% | D |
| 2,454 | West Marion NC | 1,066 | $37K | 15.1% | 0.0% | <1% | D |
| 2,455 | Waymart PA | 1,287 | $52K | 21.1% | 1.7% | 4% | D |
| 2,456 | Basin WY | 1,334 | $66K | 14.9% | 0.0% | 26% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 3,133 | 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 West Marion, the top three, the last and three more from North Carolina.
Bordering towns draw 22% of West Marion’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Marion workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Marion | – | D | C− | 19 min | $36,715 |
| Marion | 22% | D | B− | 22 min | $51,314 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Marion. Darker towns draw more of West Marion’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 West Marion: questions
What is the median household income in West Marion?
$36,715 (±$9,287) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,388 across North Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Marion?
15.1%, against 13.0% across North Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Marion?
19 minutes each way on average, against 25 across North Carolina and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Marion work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Marion (22%, 2 mi), Asheville (9%, 30 mi), Charlotte (6%, 74 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Marion walkable?
West Marion is more walkable than 21% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.8 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Marion 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 West Marion, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Marion
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.