Photo: SayCheeeeeese · Public domainUnemployment in Peterborough (0.5%) is lower than in 97% of U.S. towns
Jobs & income A−: better than 81% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #43 of 126 in New Hampshire.
Walkability A−: more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns · #10 of 126 in New Hampshire.
Household incomes here are higher than in 76% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 23 minutes each way (New Hampshire 27, U.S. 26). About one in four work in Peterborough; the top destination outside it is Keene (5%, 19 miles).
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.0 transit trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 0.0 in Manchester (EPA, 2020 schedules).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Peterborough
Peterborough is the work center of its corner
Every town that borders Peterborough (Temple, Dublin, Greenfield, Sharon, Hancock and others) has fewer jobs than working residents, while Peterborough has 1.5 per resident. Next door ↓
The quickest commute around
Peterborough’s 23-minute average trip is shorter than in any town next door, where it runs from 27 to 37 minutes. Next door ↓
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.
What’s behind Peterborough’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Peterborough is better than 81% of U.S. towns, #43 of 126 in New Hampshire. Unemployment holds Peterborough’s grade up (0.5%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 34% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Peterborough could be anywhere from B+ to A.
Peterborough fills up on a workday
On a workday 2,212 residents head out to work, 824 work right here, and 3,799 people come in from elsewhere.
About 8,100 people are in Peterborough 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.
Where Peterborough’s workers come from
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Peterborough clocks in
5% of workers
5% of workers
5% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
65% of the jobs in Peterborough pay over $3,333 a month
4,623 jobs are based in Peterborough. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Peterborough’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Peterborough, 2013 → 2023: 4,563 → 4,623. 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.
About 23 minutes each way, quicker than most of New Hampshire
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Peterborough workers work from home, vs 17% across New Hampshire. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,874 commuters (the 16% 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.
Half of Peterborough commutes less than 18 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Peterborough is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Peterborough is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns, #10 of 126 in New Hampshire. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 13.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.6% across New Hampshire, on an EPA index of 7.3.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,415 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 0.0 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). 2.7% of Peterborough households have no vehicle (New Hampshire 4.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Peterborough’s commuters take a bus or train.
Peterborough is 765th of 3,351 U.S. towns of 4,500 to 8,800 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Peterborough, the top three, the last and three more from New Hampshire.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Norwood NJ | 5,817 | $178K | 2.8% | 0.9% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 104 | Auburn NH | 6,336 | $153K | 2.5% | 1.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 135 | Brookline NH | 5,858 | $171K | 0.6% | 0.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 157 | North Hampton NH | 4,526 | $146K | 2.9% | 1.5% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 763 | Berlin Township OH | 4,646 | $94K | 7.5% | 0.0% | 19% | A− |
| 764 | Rothschild WI | 5,627 | $88K | 8.4% | 0.3% | 6% | A− |
| 765 | Peterborough NH | 6,499 | $98K | 5.7% | 0.5% | 27% | A− |
| 766 | Wright Township PA | 5,938 | $124K | 7.3% | 3.2% | 11% | A− |
| 767 | Blue Township KS | 5,449 | $118K | 6.8% | 2.2% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,351 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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.
Peterborough and the towns next door
Darker towns draw more of Peterborough’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Peterborough workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peterborough | – | A− | A− | 23 min | $98,401 |
| Temple | under 2% | B | C+ | 37 min | $94,107 |
| Dublin | under 2% | B− | A− | 28 min | $104,659 |
| Greenfield | under 2% | B+ | C− | 36 min | $103,603 |
| Sharon | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Hancock | under 2% | B+ | C+ | 33 min | $95,208 |
| Harrisville | under 2% | B | B+ | 27 min | $103,036 |
Same-state neighbors only. Sharon: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 Peterborough: questions
What is the median household income in Peterborough?
$98,401 (±$7,986) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,031 across New Hampshire and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Peterborough?
5.7%, against 7.2% across New Hampshire and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Peterborough?
23 minutes each way on average, against 27 across New Hampshire and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Peterborough work?
27% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Keene (5%, 19 mi), Jaffrey (5%, 7 mi), Manchester (5%, 26 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Peterborough walkable?
Peterborough is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 7.3 out of 20, and 14% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Peterborough without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Peterborough, from the people who make the trip.
More of Peterborough
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.