Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0With 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
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.
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.
About 450 people are in Nelson on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
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 places Nelson commutes to
Where Nelson clocks in
33% of workers
5% 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.
Getting to work from Nelson takes about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Nelson workers work from home, vs 17% across New Hampshire. Their commute is the hallway.
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 kinds of work in Nelson
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
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.
Short hops and long hauls from Nelson
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.
How Nelson compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Stoddard (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Nelson workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelson | – | — | — | 24 min | $99,792 |
| Harrisville | under 2% | B | B+ | 27 min | $103,036 |
| Stoddard | 4% | B | C− | 34 min | $94,904 |
| Roxbury | under 2% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| Sullivan | under 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.
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 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.
More of Nelson
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.