Photo: Mitchazenia · CC BY-SA 3.0Work, pay and getting to work in Avenel
Commuters spend 32 minutes getting to work on average; the New Jersey average is 31, the U.S. 26. Only 3% work in Avenel; the top destination outside it is Woodbridge Township (12%, 2 miles). Home is the office for 10% of workers, next to 17% for New Jersey as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Avenel
Stores, warehouses and trucking
62% of the jobs in Avenel are in trade, transport and utilities, against 27% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
Avenel has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Avenel went from 6,121 in 2013 to 10,156 in 2023, +66%. The jobs ↓
Avenel draws workers from far and wide
The 10,156 jobs in Avenel are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 41%; the other 57% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
The kinds of work in Avenel
10,156 jobs are based in Avenel.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Avenel, 2013 → 2023: 6,121 → 10,156. 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 Avenel’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns that employ Avenel’s residents
Where Avenel clocks in
12% of workers
9% of workers
7% 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.
How a workday changes Avenel
On a workday 6,950 residents head out to work, 251 work right here, and 9,905 people come in from elsewhere.
About 20,000 people are in Avenel on a workday afternoon, 17% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.41 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
About 32 minutes each way, about the NJ average
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Avenel workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,856 commuters (the 10% 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.
Miles to work from Avenel
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.
Around Avenel: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Carteret (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Avenel workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avenel | – | — | — | 32 min | $101,670 |
| Carteret | 2% | B+ | A+ | 31 min | $96,862 |
| Colonia | under 2% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| Linden | under 2% | B | A+ | 32 min | $92,915 |
| Port Reading | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Rahway | under 2% | B | A+ | 32 min | $91,461 |
Same-state neighbors only. Colonia and Port Reading: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Avenel’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 Avenel: questions
What is the median household income in Avenel?
$101,670 (±$10,769) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Avenel?
7.9%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Avenel?
32 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Avenel work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Woodbridge Township (12%, 2 mi), New York City (9%, 18 mi), Edison Township (7%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Avenel without a car?
8% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Avenel, from the people who make the trip.
More of Avenel
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.