Photo: LaetusStudiis · CC BY-SA 4.0Unemployment in Absecon (5.6%) is higher than in 69% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Absecon is better than 53% of U.S. towns (B−); for walkability it is more walkable than 79% of U.S. towns (A−). Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 43.7 in Jersey City. Only 5% stay in Absecon for work; outside it, Atlantic City is the main destination (29%, 4 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Absecon at work: what stands out
Much of Absecon works one town over
49% of working residents work in a town that borders Absecon: Atlantic City (29%), Egg Harbor Township (9%) and Galloway Township (8%). Next door ↓
Commutes from Absecon are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 31 across New Jersey. That’s about 84 hours a year less on the road than the typical New Jersey worker. Time on the road ↓
Most Absecon residents work close to home
64% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
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.
Inside Absecon’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car holds Absecon’s grade up (ahead of 68% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Absecon could be anywhere from C to A.
Commuting from Absecon: about 20 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Absecon workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,631 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across New Jersey: 75% drive alone, 10% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
How far Absecon goes to work
About 17% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
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 a workday changes Absecon
On a workday 3,951 residents head out to work, 208 work right here, and 2,187 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,400 people are in Absecon on a workday afternoon, 19% fewer than live here.
0.58 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 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Absecon: the destinations
Where Absecon clocks in
9% of workers
8% 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.
Inside Absecon’s 2,395 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Absecon, 2013 → 2023: 2,333 → 2,395. 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 Absecon’s own residents hold wherever they work.
In Absecon, walking beats the bus
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 13.2% across New Jersey.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,133 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 87% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 9% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 76% 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). 0.6% of Absecon households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Absecon’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Absecon is 1,614th of 2,886 U.S. towns of 6,400 to 12,400
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Waldwick NJ | 10,252 | $178K | 1.4% | 2.2% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Old Tappan NJ | 6,686 | $205K | 2.3% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 28 | Fanwood NJ | 8,035 | $196K | 1.0% | 2.7% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,612 | Independence OR | 10,195 | $85K | 12.5% | 3.9% | 12% | B− |
| 1,613 | Junction City OR | 7,224 | $86K | 9.5% | 5.3% | 12% | B− |
| 1,614 | Absecon NJ | 9,209 | $74K | 7.9% | 5.6% | 5% | B− |
| 1,615 | St. Francis WI | 8,955 | $57K | 17.0% | 2.9% | 4% | B− |
| 1,616 | Harrison Township OH | 10,681 | $64K | 9.2% | 4.6% | 7% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,886 | 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.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Absecon, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
The towns next door employ 49% of Absecon
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Absecon workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Absecon | – | B− | A− | 20 min | $73,676 |
| Atlantic City | 29% | D | A+ | 24 min | $41,028 |
| Pleasantville | 3% | C− | A+ | 22 min | $53,661 |
| Galloway Township | 8% | B− | A− | 24 min | $91,229 |
| Absecon Highlands | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Egg Harbor Township | 9% | B− | B | 23 min | $97,190 |
Same-state neighbors only. Absecon Highlands: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Atlantic City. Darker towns draw more of Absecon’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 Absecon: questions
What is the median household income in Absecon?
$73,676 (±$10,829) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Absecon?
7.9%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Absecon?
20 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Absecon work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Atlantic City (29%, 4 mi), Egg Harbor Township (9%, 7 mi), Galloway Township (8%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Absecon walkable?
Absecon is more walkable than 79% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 12.1 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Absecon without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 9% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Absecon, from the people who make the trip.
More of Absecon
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.