Photo: Soc 59 · CC BY-SA 4.0Households in Middlesex earn more than those in 80% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 2.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 43.7 in Jersey City. Below the poverty line: 11.3% of residents, next to 9.7% for New Jersey as a whole. For jobs and income Middlesex is better than 79% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns (A−).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Middlesex
No single place dominates Middlesex’s commute
The biggest draw, Bridgewater Township, gets only 5% of working residents, and 58% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Middlesex residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
Middlesex draws workers from far and wide
The 5,195 jobs in Middlesex are filled from a wide area. Middlesex’s own residents hold 10% and the ten next-biggest home towns 27%; the other 63% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Middlesex are quick
The average trip to work takes 26 minutes, against 31 across New Jersey. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical New Jersey worker. Time on the road ↓
Middlesex makes and builds things
35% of the jobs based in Middlesex are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Middlesex residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 13%. The jobs ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Middlesex
Job access by car holds Middlesex’s grade up (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down. It also does well on household income and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Middlesex could be anywhere from B to A+.
5% of working residents work in Bridgewater Township
Where Middlesex 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.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
The trip to work from Middlesex: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Middlesex workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,952 commuters (the 9% 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.
A place that makes things: 35% of Middlesex’s jobs are in goods
5,195 jobs are based in Middlesex.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Middlesex, 2013 → 2023: 4,726 → 5,195. 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 Middlesex’s own residents hold wherever they work.
In and out of Middlesex on a workday
On a workday 6,660 residents head out to work, 517 work right here, and 4,678 people come in from elsewhere.
About 13,000 people are in Middlesex on a workday afternoon, 13% fewer than live here.
0.72 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.
Middlesex’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Middlesex
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.3% 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 7,671 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, 26% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 2.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 71% 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). 9.4% of Middlesex households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Middlesex’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Middlesex ranks: 788th of 2,362 U.S. towns of 10,000 to 20,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5 | Waldwick NJ | 10,252 | $178K | 1.4% | 2.2% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Franklin Lakes NJ | 11,180 | $236K | 3.4% | 2.3% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Hanover Township NJ | 15,105 | $157K | 3.2% | 2.6% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 786 | San Diego Country Estates CA | 10,223 | $145K | 2.6% | 4.1% | 4% | A− |
| 787 | Riverview MI | 11,947 | $73K | 7.3% | 2.3% | 6% | A− |
| 788 | Middlesex NJ | 14,740 | $105K | 11.3% | 3.6% | 7% | A− |
| 789 | Royal Kunia HI | 13,555 | $135K | 4.7% | 6.2% | 1% | A− |
| 790 | Mont Belvieu TX | 10,673 | $133K | 9.3% | 4.0% | 10% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,362 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Middlesex, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
10% of Middlesex works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Bridgewater Township (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Middlesex workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middlesex | – | A− | A− | 26 min | $105,000 |
| Green Brook Township | under 3% | A | A | 30 min | $208,375 |
| Martinsville | under 3% | — | — | 34 min | — |
| Bridgewater Township | 5% | A | A− | 31 min | $172,851 |
| Bound Brook | under 3% | B+ | A+ | 24 min | $90,571 |
| Piscataway Township | 5% | A− | A | 26 min | $127,832 |
| Dunellen | under 3% | B− | A | 32 min | $86,967 |
| South Bound Brook | under 3% | B | A | 26 min | $112,961 |
Same-state neighbors only. Martinsville: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Middlesex’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 Middlesex: questions
What is the median household income in Middlesex?
$105,000 (±$12,543) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Middlesex?
11.3%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Middlesex?
26 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Middlesex work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Bridgewater Township (5%, 6 mi), Franklin Township (5%, 7 mi), Piscataway Township (5%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Middlesex walkable?
Middlesex is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 14.1 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Middlesex without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. 26% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Middlesex, from the people who make the trip.
More of Middlesex
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.