Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Household incomes in Exeter are higher than in 84% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 4.7% (New Hampshire 7.2%). For jobs and income Exeter is better than 77% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (B+). About one in five work in Exeter; the top destination outside it is Portsmouth (11%, 10 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Exeter: the figures worth knowing
Exeter is where the jobs are
Exeter has 11,483 jobs, 1.5 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Exeter draws workers from far and wide
The 11,483 jobs in Exeter are filled from a wide area. Exeter’s own residents hold 14% and the ten next-biggest home towns 29%; the other 57% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
The four measures behind Exeter’s grade
Household income holds Exeter’s grade up ($110,346, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (4.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Exeter could be anywhere from B to A.
The daily commute in and out of Exeter
On a workday 5,997 residents head out to work, 1,590 work right here, and 9,893 people come in from elsewhere.
About 20,000 people are in Exeter on a workday afternoon, 24% more than live here.
1.5 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.
Commuting in to Exeter: where workers come from
Where Exeter clocks in
11% of workers
4% 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.
70% of the jobs in Exeter pay over $3,333 a month
11,483 jobs are based in Exeter.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Exeter, 2013 → 2023: 9,806 → 11,483. 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 Exeter’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Exeter: about 25 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Exeter workers work from home, vs 17% across New Hampshire. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,912 commuters (the 20% who work from home are left out). Across New Hampshire: 87% 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 commute from Exeter, by distance
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 trips from Exeter start in a car
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 8,632 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). 6.5% of Exeter households have no vehicle (New Hampshire 4.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Exeter’s commuters take a bus or train.
823rd of 2,220: where Exeter ranks among U.S. towns of 11,000 to 22,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 198 | Amherst NH | 11,985 | $153K | 4.4% | 1.5% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 276 | Hooksett NH | 15,346 | $118K | 3.3% | 2.5% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 282 | Goffstown NH | 18,607 | $114K | 6.4% | 0.8% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 821 | Prairie Ridge WA | 12,074 | $114K | 3.7% | 5.8% | <1% | A− |
| 822 | Tinton Falls NJ | 19,539 | $117K | 6.7% | 5.8% | 8% | A− |
| 823 | Exeter NH | 16,213 | $110K | 4.7% | 4.9% | 21% | A− |
| 824 | Meridianville AL | 11,150 | $97K | 4.9% | 4.2% | 2% | A− |
| 825 | Willowick OH | 14,178 | $77K | 5.7% | 3.8% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,220 | 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 Exeter, the top three, the last and three more from New Hampshire.
Around Exeter: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Stratham (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Exeter workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exeter | – | A− | B+ | 25 min | $110,346 |
| Stratham | 3% | A | B | 27 min | $151,998 |
| Brentwood | under 2% | A | B− | 28 min | $165,509 |
| Newfields | under 2% | A+ | C | 26 min | $197,885 |
| Kingston | under 2% | A | C | 34 min | $105,330 |
| East Kingston | under 2% | A− | C− | 32 min | $138,194 |
| Kensington | under 2% | A | C+ | 29 min | $165,083 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Exeter’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 Exeter: questions
What is the median household income in Exeter?
$110,346 (±$12,674) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,031 across New Hampshire and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Exeter?
4.7%, against 7.2% across New Hampshire and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Exeter?
25 minutes each way on average, against 27 across New Hampshire and 26 nationally. 20% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Exeter work?
21% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portsmouth (11%, 10 mi), Manchester (4%, 24 mi), Stratham (3%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Exeter walkable?
Exeter is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.4 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Exeter without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Exeter, from the people who make the trip.
More of Exeter
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.