Photo: Smallbones · Public domainHouseholds in Avalon earn more than those in 93% of U.S. towns
Avalon grades A− for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Below the poverty line: 4.8% of residents, next to 9.7% across New Jersey. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 0.5 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 43.7 in Jersey City.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Avalon apart on work
Avalon is where the jobs are
Avalon has 900 jobs, 2.6 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 1,800 people are in town, 45% more than the 1,200 who live here. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
42% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
A lot of Avalon works from home
34% of Avalon workers work from home, against 17% across New Jersey. 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 352 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Avalon
On income, poverty and job access, Avalon is better than 80% of U.S. towns. Household income holds Avalon’s grade up ($139,167, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 37% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
Unemployment (3.9%) is left out: Avalon’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Avalon could be anywhere from B+ to A.
The daily commute in and out of Avalon
On a workday 288 residents head out to work, 64 work right here, and 836 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,800 people are in Avalon on a workday afternoon, 45% more than live here.
2.6 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.
Miles to work from Avalon
About 42% 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.
Time on the road from Avalon: about 25 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Avalon workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 361 commuters (the 34% 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 the people who work in Avalon live
Where Avalon clocks in
7% of workers
7% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
900 jobs are based in Avalon.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Avalon, 2013 → 2023: 753 → 900. 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 Avalon’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Avalon is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Avalon is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Avalon 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 546 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 68% 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 0.5 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 49% 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). 0.9% of Avalon households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Avalon’s commuters take a bus or train.
397th of 4,312: where Avalon ranks among U.S. towns of 800 to 1,600
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 132 | Port Republic NJ | 1,125 | $123K | 1.3% | 9.0% | 0% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 154 | Mannington Township NJ | 1,495 | $109K | 4.2% | 3.4% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 238 | Farmingdale NJ | 1,502 | $89K | 5.7% | 11.2% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 395 | Deer Creek Township IL | 1,392 | $108K | 6.5% | 0.8% | 6% | A− |
| 396 | Danvers IL | 1,062 | $89K | 4.8% | 1.8% | 2% | A− |
| 397 | Avalon NJ | 1,205 | $139K | 4.8% | 3.9% | 18% | A− |
| 398 | Cartwright Township IL | 1,490 | $101K | 2.5% | 3.4% | 4% | A− |
| 399 | Kindred ND | 1,044 | $105K | 3.5% | 1.6% | 9% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,312 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | 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 Avalon, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
Avalon and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Middle Township (7%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Avalon workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avalon | – | A− | A+ | 25 min | $139,167 |
| Middle Township | 7% | C+ | A− | 20 min | $83,508 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Avalon’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 Avalon: questions
What is the median household income in Avalon?
$139,167 (±$16,144) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Avalon?
4.8%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Avalon?
25 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 34% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Avalon work?
18% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Stone Harbor (7%, 4 mi), Middle Township (7%, 6 mi), Philadelphia (3%, 67 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Avalon walkable?
Avalon is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 12.8 out of 20, and 15% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Avalon without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Avalon, from the people who make the trip.
More of Avalon
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.