Photo: formulanone from Huntsville, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of South River works elsewhere
South River grades B for jobs and income and A for walkability. 2,225 jobs are based in South River; 6,962 of its residents have a job. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 3.5 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 43.7 in Jersey City.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from South River, in brief
The four measures behind South River’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, South River is better than 58% of U.S. towns, #372 of 468 in New Jersey. Job access by car holds South River’s grade up (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (7.7%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, South River could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
7% of working residents work in East Brunswick Township
Where South River clocks in
7% of workers
7% 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.
Who works in South River, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 6,588 residents head out to work, 374 work right here, and 1,851 people come in from elsewhere.
About 12,000 people are in South River on a workday afternoon, 29% 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.
The kinds of work in South River
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in South River, 2014 → 2024: 2,067 → 2,225. 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 South River’s own residents hold wherever they work.
From South River, about 32 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of South River workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,584 commuters (the 7% 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.
Half of South River commutes less than 12 miles
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.
South River is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, South River is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns, #244 of 468 in New Jersey. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 4.9% 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 8,129 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 77% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 17% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.5 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). 4.3% of South River households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of South River’s commuters take a bus or train.
1,255th of 2,220: where South River ranks among U.S. towns of 11,000 to 22,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | Franklin Lakes NJ | 11,180 | $236K | 3.4% | 2.3% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 28 | Hanover Township NJ | 15,105 | $157K | 3.2% | 2.6% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | East Greenwich Township NJ | 12,610 | $149K | 2.0% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,253 | Summerfield MD | 15,065 | $91K | 12.9% | 6.7% | 1% | B |
| 1,254 | Hornsby Bend TX | 12,367 | $90K | 15.0% | 4.9% | 1% | B |
| 1,255 | South River NJ | 16,262 | $96K | 12.5% | 7.7% | 5% | B |
| 1,256 | Easthampton MA | 15,851 | $72K | 8.0% | 4.7% | 16% | B |
| 1,257 | Baraboo WI | 13,224 | $70K | 8.4% | 2.9% | 23% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,220 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 South River, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
The towns around South River
The biggest share goes to East Brunswick Township (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | South River workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South River | – | B | A | 32 min | $96,147 |
| Sayreville | 2% | A− | A | 31 min | $99,979 |
| East Brunswick Township | 7% | A | A | 37 min | $143,343 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of South River’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 South River: questions
What is the median household income in South River?
$96,147 (±$14,340) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in South River?
12.5%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from South River?
32 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in South River work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are East Brunswick Township (7%, 2 mi), New York City (7%, 28 mi), Edison Township (5%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is South River walkable?
South River is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 12.2 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around South River without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 17% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from South River, from the people who make the trip.
More of South River
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. 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.