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NelsonNH ChurchAndMailboxesPhoto: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Nelson

With 0.2 jobs for every working resident, most of Nelson works elsewhere

Home is the office for 32% of workers; New Hampshire has 17%. Nelson has 51 jobs, and 266 of its residents work somewhere. Only 3% work in Nelson itself; outside it, Keene draws the most (33%, 10 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

What stands out · In brief

Nelson at work: what stands out

Nelson is a place people come home to

There are 51 jobs based in Nelson, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Nelson has about 450 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓

One in three of Nelson works in Keene

89 working residents, 33%, have their main job in Keene, 9.9 miles away. That’s 11 times as many as work in Nelson itself. The commute map ↓

Home offices are common in Nelson

32% of Nelson workers work from home, against 17% across New Hampshire. 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 266 working residents, small shifts move the shares.

★ What stands out · Day and night

Nelson on a workday afternoon

On a workday 259 residents head out to work, 7 work right here, and 44 people come in from elsewhere.

259live here, work elsewhere
7live and work here
44work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night660
Workday450
660live here− 260head out to work+ 44come in to work= 450on a workday

About 450 people are in Nelson on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.19jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

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 commute map

The places Nelson commutes to

Keene: 89 residents work here (33%)Nashua: 6 residents work here (2%)Concord: 7 residents work here (3%)BuffaloDeerfieldPeterborough: 13 residents work here (5%)GoffstownWeare: 5 residents work here (2%)RoxburyStoddard: 10 residents work here (4%)SullivanAlsteadSwanzey: 9 residents work here (3%)NelsonHarrisvilleMarlborough: 6 residents work here (2%)Henniker: 6 residents work here (2%)KeenePeterboroughStoddardSwanzeyConcordNashuaNelson
1
Keene9.9 mi away
33%89
2
Peterborough11.9 mi away
5%13
3
Stoddard5.3 mi away
4%10
4
Swanzey13.2 mi away
3%9
5
Concord32.5 mi away
3%7
6
Nelson (in town)right here
3%7
7
Nashua36.3 mi away
2%6
8
Marlborough8.3 mi away
2%6
9
Henniker18.8 mi away
2%6
10
Weare21.8 mi away
2%5
Everywhere elseother towns and states
41%108
The top trips

Where Nelson clocks in

Lines 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.

Time on the road

Getting to work from Nelson takes about 24 minutes

A year of commuting
186 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Nelson24 min
New Hampshire27 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
32%

of Nelson workers work from home, vs 17% across New Hampshire. Their commute is the hallway.

About 3 in 10
How Nelson gets to work
80%Drive alone
11%Carpool
9%Walk

Share of the 202 commuters (the 32% 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 jobs

The kinds of work in Nelson

Jobs based in NelsonJobs Nelson residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms25%17%
Trade, transport & utilities10%19%
Services: health, schools, offices65%65%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less29%20%
$1,251–$3,333 a month24%22%
Over $3,333 a month47%58%

Who does it

29 or younger22%21%
30 to 5437%45%
55 and older41%33%
+65%

Jobs based in Nelson, 2013 → 2023: 31 → 51. 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 Nelson’s own residents hold wherever they work.

How far

Short hops and long hauls from Nelson

10 mi25 mi45 miKeene: 33% · 9.9 miPeterborough: 5% · 11.9 miStoddard: 4% · 5.3 miSwanzey: 3% · 13.2 miConcord: 3% · 32.5 miNashua: 2% · 36.3 miMarlborough: 2% · 8.3 miHenniker: 2% · 18.8 miWeare: 2% · 21.8 miKeene 33%Peterborough 5%Stoddard 4%Swanzey 3%Concord 3%Nelson
NelsonTop destinations (size = commuters)
42%Under 10 mi113 residents
27%10–24 mi72 residents
20%25–50 mi54 residents
10%Over 50 mi27 residents

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.

Next door

How Nelson compares with the towns next door

The biggest share goes to Stoddard (4%).

10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%

Average commute minutes, one way

Roxbury21 min
Nelson24 min
Harrisville27 min
Sullivan32 min
Stoddard34 min

Jobs & commute next door

TownNelson workers thereJobs & incomeWalkabilityCommuteHousehold income
Nelson–——24 min$99,792
Harrisvilleunder 2%BB+27 min$103,036
Stoddard4%BC−34 min$94,904
Roxburyunder 2%——21 min—
Sullivanunder 2%——32 min—

Same-state neighbors only. Roxbury and Sullivan: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.

Darker towns draw more of Nelson’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Nelson: questions

What is the median household income in Nelson?

$99,792 (±$23,218) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,031 across New Hampshire and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Nelson?

1.4%, against 7.2% across New Hampshire and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Nelson?

24 minutes each way on average, against 27 across New Hampshire and 26 nationally. 32% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Nelson work?

3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Keene (33%, 10 mi), Peterborough (5%, 12 mi), Stoddard (4%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Nelson 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 Nelson, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Nelson

Nelson home →

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.