Atlantic City Convention Hall · Photo: Jack Boucher · Public domainHousehold incomes in Atlantic City are lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
Home is the office for 5% of workers, against 17% across New Jersey. The poverty rate is 32.3%, where New Jersey as a whole has 9.7%. Jobs and income earn Atlantic City D; getting around on foot earns it A+.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Atlantic City stands out on work
Atlantic City is where the jobs are
Atlantic City has 37,989 jobs, 2.7 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 63,000 people are in town, 61% more than the 39,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Nearly all the work in Atlantic City is services
92% of the jobs based here are in services, such as health care, schools and offices. Only 1% are in factories, building or farms. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Atlantic City are quick
The average trip to work takes 24 minutes, against 31 across New Jersey. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical New Jersey worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Atlantic City
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Atlantic City is better than 11% of U.S. towns, #468 of 468 in New Jersey. Job access by car holds Atlantic City’s grade up (ahead of 72% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (14.5%, U.S. 5.2%).
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Atlantic City stays D.
Who works in Atlantic City, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 6,995 residents head out to work, 7,219 work right here, and 30,770 people come in from elsewhere.
About 63,000 people are in Atlantic City on a workday afternoon, 61% more than live here.
2.7 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 2024, primary jobs.
Atlantic City is a services town
37,989 jobs are based in Atlantic City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Atlantic City, 2014 → 2024: 45,841 → 37,989. 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 Atlantic City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Atlantic City: about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Atlantic City workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 14,546 commuters (the 5% 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.
Where Atlantic City’s workers come from
Where Atlantic City clocks in
4% of workers
3% of workers
3% 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.
Half of Atlantic City commutes less than 2 miles
About 21% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Atlantic City is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Atlantic City is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #6 of 468 in New Jersey. Both inputs place Atlantic City 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 15,317 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 95% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 13.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 95% 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). 38.6% of Atlantic City households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 21% of Atlantic City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Atlantic City next to U.S. towns of 27,000 to 52,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 3 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Westfield NJ | 32,595 | $233K | 1.8% | 3.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 53 | Livingston Township NJ | 32,223 | $230K | 2.3% | 4.3% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 62 | Marlboro Township NJ | 42,254 | $186K | 3.5% | 3.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,098 | Alamogordo NM | 31,906 | $56K | 16.6% | 7.5% | 48% | D |
| 1,099 | Statesboro GA | 35,366 | $45K | 36.0% | 9.0% | 31% | D |
| 1,100 | Atlantic City NJ | 38,787 | $41K | 32.3% | 14.5% | 51% | D |
| 1,101 | San Luis AZ | 42,030 | $59K | 18.1% | 8.0% | 15% | D |
| 1,102 | Marion IN | 28,234 | $43K | 29.6% | 7.7% | 42% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 1,113 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 25% | 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 Atlantic City, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
Next door is work for 10% of Atlantic City
The biggest share goes to Egg Harbor Township (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Atlantic City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic City | – | D | A+ | 24 min | $41,028 |
| Pleasantville | 3% | C− | A+ | 22 min | $53,661 |
| Galloway Township | 3% | B− | A− | 24 min | $91,229 |
| Absecon | under 1% | B− | A− | 20 min | $73,676 |
| Ventnor City | under 1% | C+ | A+ | 26 min | $68,671 |
| Egg Harbor Township | 4% | B− | B | 23 min | $97,190 |
| Brigantine | under 1% | B | A | 28 min | $97,250 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Atlantic City’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 Atlantic City: questions
What is the median household income in Atlantic City?
$41,028 (±$3,092) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Atlantic City?
32.3%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Atlantic City?
24 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Atlantic City work?
51% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Egg Harbor Township (4%, 9 mi), Galloway Township (3%, 8 mi), Pleasantville (3%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Atlantic City walkable?
Atlantic City is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 15.5 out of 20, and 35% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Atlantic City without a car?
21% of commuters take transit and 39% of households have no car. 95% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Atlantic City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Atlantic City
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.