Photo: Freeholdman12 · CC BY 4.0Household incomes in Somerville are higher than in 80% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Somerville is better than 89% of U.S. towns (A); for walkability it is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns (A+). Poverty touches 5.9% of residents, next to 9.7% for New Jersey as a whole. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 43.7 in Jersey City.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Somerville apart
Somerville trades workers with the towns around it
Somerville has about as many jobs (7,137) as working residents (6,672), but they are mostly different people: 6,235 residents leave for work each day while 6,700 people come in. Only 6% of the jobs in Somerville are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
No single place dominates Somerville’s commute
The biggest draw, Bridgewater Township, gets only 8% of working residents, and 59% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Somerville residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
Somerville draws workers from far and wide
The 7,137 jobs in Somerville are filled from a wide area. Somerville’s own residents hold 6% and the ten next-biggest home towns 28%; the other 66% 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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Somerville
Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 93% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Somerville could be anywhere from A− to A+.
How many people are in Somerville by day
On a workday 6,235 residents head out to work, 437 work right here, and 6,700 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 (1.07 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.
8% of working residents work in Bridgewater Township
Where Somerville clocks in
8% of workers
4% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
7,137 jobs are based in Somerville.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Somerville, 2013 → 2023: 6,768 → 7,137. 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 Somerville’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Somerville’s commute takes about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Somerville workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,562 commuters (the 17% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Somerville
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.
Somerville is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 7,916 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, 42% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 78% 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). 7.7% of Somerville households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of Somerville’s commuters take a bus or train.
Somerville places 432nd of 2,362 on jobs and income among 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 430 | North Druid Hills GA | 17,997 | $103K | 11.1% | 1.5% | 4% | A |
| 431 | Minooka IL | 12,899 | $115K | 2.6% | 4.2% | 7% | A |
| 432 | Somerville NJ | 14,665 | $104K | 5.9% | 3.4% | 7% | A |
| 433 | Easttown Township PA | 11,090 | $215K | 7.2% | 4.0% | 4% | A |
| 434 | Brock Hall MD | 13,615 | $206K | 2.7% | 6.0% | 2% | 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 Somerville, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
11% of Somerville works in a town next door
The biggest share goes to Bridgewater Township (8%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Somerville workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Somerville | – | A | A+ | 28 min | $103,760 |
| Bridgewater Township | 8% | A | A− | 31 min | $172,851 |
| Finderne | under 3% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Hillsborough Township | 3% | A | B− | 33 min | $154,031 |
| Raritan | under 3% | A | A− | 22 min | $107,672 |
| Bridgewater Center | under 3% | — | — | 28 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Finderne and Bridgewater Center: 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 Somerville’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 Somerville: questions
What is the median household income in Somerville?
$103,760 (±$9,316) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Somerville?
5.9%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Somerville?
28 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 17% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Somerville work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Bridgewater Township (8%, 2 mi), Franklin Township (4%, 7 mi), New Brunswick (4%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Somerville walkable?
Somerville is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.4 out of 20, and 9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Somerville without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 42% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Somerville, from the people who make the trip.
More of Somerville
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.