Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0Households in Kensington have higher incomes than those in 97% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 1.9%, where New Hampshire as a whole has 7.2%. Kensington grades A for jobs and income and C+ for walkability. Only 2% stay in Kensington for work; outside it, Portsmouth is the main destination (12%, 13 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Kensington, in brief
A lot of Kensington workers cross into Massachusetts
25% of Kensington workers work outside New Hampshire, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Amesbury (4%), Newburyport (4%) and Haverhill (3%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Kensington is a place people come home to
There are 297 jobs based in Kensington, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Kensington has about 1,400 people in it, 34% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Kensington’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Kensington is better than 92% of U.S. towns. The poverty rate is its strongest input; unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.6%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Kensington could be anywhere from A− to A+.
The places Kensington commutes to
Where Kensington clocks in
12% of workers
10% of workers
4% 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.
A workday in Kensington: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 997 residents head out to work, 19 work right here, and 278 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,400 people are in Kensington on a workday afternoon, 34% fewer than live here.
0.29 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 2024, primary jobs.
77% of the jobs in Kensington pay over $3,333 a month
297 jobs are based in Kensington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Kensington, 2014 → 2024: 302 → 297. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Kensington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Kensington: about 29 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Kensington workers work from home, vs 17% across New Hampshire. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 933 commuters (the 19% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Kensington
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
For most of Kensington, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Kensington is more walkable than 36% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Kensington 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 1,154 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). 1.2% of Kensington households have no vehicle (New Hampshire 4.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Kensington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 1,500 to 2,800, Kensington ranks 280th of 5,148 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 160 | Newfields NH | 1,775 | $198K | 2.4% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 225 | Mont Vernon NH | 2,698 | $158K | 4.4% | 1.5% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 251 | Hampton Falls NH | 2,379 | $166K | 4.0% | 2.8% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 278 | New Hope PA | 2,629 | $175K | 4.2% | 4.0% | 14% | A |
| 279 | Briarcliff TX | 2,361 | $141K | 3.6% | 1.8% | 3% | A |
| 280 | Kensington NH | 2,092 | $165K | 1.9% | 3.6% | 2% | A |
| 281 | Weller Township OH | 1,874 | $97K | 2.6% | 0.0% | 2% | A |
| 282 | Ashippun WI | 2,666 | $97K | 4.2% | 1.1% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 5,148 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 61% | 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 Kensington, the top three, the last and three more from New Hampshire.
10% of Kensington works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Kensington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kensington | – | A | C+ | 29 min | $165,083 |
| East Kingston | under 3% | A− | C− | 32 min | $138,194 |
| Hampton Falls | under 3% | A | B | 32 min | $166,157 |
| South Hampton | under 3% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Exeter | 10% | A− | B+ | 25 min | $110,346 |
Same-state neighbors only. South Hampton: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Exeter. Darker towns draw more of Kensington’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 2024, 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 Kensington: questions
What is the median household income in Kensington?
$165,083 (±$18,089) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,031 across New Hampshire and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Kensington?
1.9%, against 7.2% across New Hampshire and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Kensington?
29 minutes each way on average, against 27 across New Hampshire and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Kensington work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portsmouth (12%, 13 mi), Exeter (10%, 4 mi), Amesbury (4%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Kensington walkable?
Kensington is more walkable than 36% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.2 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Kensington without a car?
1% 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 Kensington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Kensington
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.