Earning a living in Rio Grande
Working from home is the commute for 8% of workers (New Jersey 17%). Only 6% work in Rio Grande; the top destination outside it is Middle Township (27%, 6 miles). The average commute takes 15 minutes each way, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Rio Grande at work: what stands out
Commutes from Rio Grande are quick
The average trip to work takes 15 minutes, against 31 across New Jersey. That’s about 123 hours a year less on the road than the typical New Jersey worker. Time on the road ↓
Rio Grande trades workers with the towns around it
Rio Grande has about as many jobs (1,699) as working residents (1,418), but they are mostly different people: 1,333 residents leave for work each day while 1,614 people come in. Only 5% of the jobs in Rio Grande are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
50% of the jobs in Rio Grande are in trade, transport and utilities, against 21% of the jobs its residents hold. 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.
Time on the road from Rio Grande: about 15 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rio Grande workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,246 commuters (the 8% 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 workday in Rio Grande: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 1,333 residents head out to work, 85 work right here, and 1,614 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.20 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
What work there is in Rio Grande: 1,699 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rio Grande, 2014 → 2024: 1,905 → 1,699. 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 Rio Grande’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Out of Rio Grande to work: where people go
Where Rio Grande clocks in
27% of workers
12% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Rio Grande
About 27% 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.
The towns around Rio Grande
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Rio Grande workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rio Grande | – | — | — | 15 min | $76,250 |
| Whitesboro | under 2% | — | — | 23 min | — |
| Erma | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Whitesboro and Erma: 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 Rio Grande’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 Rio Grande: questions
What is the median household income in Rio Grande?
$76,250 (±$25,543) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rio Grande?
10.1%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rio Grande?
15 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rio Grande work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Middle Township (27%, 6 mi), Lower Township (12%, 3 mi), Wildwood (5%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Rio Grande without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Rio Grande, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rio Grande
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.