Most of Pines Lake commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident
Pines Lake has 259 jobs for 1,500 working residents. Hardly any work in Pines Lake; the top destination outside it is New York City (14%, 29 miles). Working residents average 33 minutes each way, next to 31 for New Jersey and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Pines Lake apart on work
Pines Lake is a place people come home to
There are 259 jobs based in Pines Lake, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Pines Lake has about 1,600 people in it, 43% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Pines Lake’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Pines Lake is New York City, NY, 29 miles away as the crow flies. 14% of working residents (204) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Pines Lake than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Pines Lake fell from 359 in 2014 to 259 in 2024, −28%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
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.
Who leaves Pines Lake for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,489 residents head out to work, 11 work right here, and 248 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,600 people are in Pines Lake on a workday afternoon, 43% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Near or far: the trip to work from Pines Lake
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.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in Pines Lake
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Pines Lake, 2014 → 2024: 359 → 259. 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 Pines Lake’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns that employ Pines Lake’s residents
Where Pines Lake clocks in
14% of workers
8% of workers
4% 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.
About 33 minutes to work from Pines Lake
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Pines Lake workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,004 commuters (the 23% 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.
Next door to Pines Lake
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Pines Lake workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pines Lake | – | — | — | 33 min | $172,348 |
| Pompton Lakes | under 2% | A | A | 30 min | $124,454 |
| Oakland | under 2% | A | A− | 30 min | $162,019 |
| Franklin Lakes | under 2% | A+ | A | 37 min | $235,795 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Pines Lake’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 Pines Lake: questions
What is the median household income in Pines Lake?
$172,348 (±$15,947) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Pines Lake?
4.7%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Pines Lake?
33 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 23% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Pines Lake work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (14%, 29 mi), Wayne Township (8%, 4 mi), Paterson (4%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Pines Lake without a car?
10% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Pines Lake, from the people who make the trip.
More of Pines Lake
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.