Summit Playhouse · Photo: Jim.henderson · Public domainHousehold incomes in Summit are higher than in 98% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 9.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 43.7 in Jersey City. The poverty rate is 5.5%, next to 9.7% for New Jersey as a whole. Summit grades A for jobs and income and A+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Summit apart
Summit draws workers from far and wide
The 19,702 jobs in Summit are filled from a wide area. Summit’s own residents hold 5% and the ten next-biggest home towns 18%; the other 77% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Summit is where the jobs are
Summit has 19,702 jobs, 2.2 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 34,000 people are in town, 46% more than the 23,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Summit workers cross into New York
20% of Summit workers work outside New Jersey, most of them in New York, the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
76% of Summit’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data, and so do 78% of the jobs based in Summit. The jobs ↓
Summit’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Summit is New York City, NY, 23 miles away as the crow flies. 17% of working residents (1,572) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
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.
How Summit earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Summit is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #147 of 468 in New Jersey. Job access by car holds Summit’s grade up (among the top U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (5.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Summit could be anywhere from A− to A+.
Who travels to work in Summit, and from where
Where Summit clocks in
17% of workers
4% of workers
3% 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.
How many people are in Summit by day
On a workday 7,965 residents head out to work, 1,044 work right here, and 18,658 people come in from elsewhere.
About 34,000 people are in Summit on a workday afternoon, 46% more than live here.
2.2 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
In Summit, services account for most jobs
19,702 jobs are based in Summit.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Summit, 2013 → 2023: 15,429 → 19,702. 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 Summit’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from Summit
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.
About 34 minutes each way, longer than most of New Jersey
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Summit workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,557 commuters (the 24% 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.
Summit is easy on foot, hard by bus
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 11,229 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 84% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 28% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 9.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 93% 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). 5.8% of Summit households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 23% of Summit’s commuters take a bus or train.
350th of 1,712: where Summit ranks among U.S. towns of 16,000 to 31,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | Scotch Plains Township NJ | 25,437 | $184K | 2.5% | 3.2% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 46 | Cranford Township NJ | 24,725 | $156K | 2.5% | 3.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 52 | Ridgewood NJ | 26,527 | $208K | 4.2% | 3.4% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 348 | Portsmouth RI | 17,474 | $117K | 4.9% | 3.1% | 16% | A |
| 349 | The Crossings FL | 22,963 | $91K | 7.6% | 2.1% | 3% | A |
| 350 | Summit NJ | 23,314 | $190K | 5.5% | 5.4% | 12% | A |
| 351 | Plymouth Township MI | 27,130 | $117K | 4.7% | 4.6% | 8% | A |
| 352 | Palmer Ranch FL | 16,867 | $103K | 6.9% | 1.5% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,712 | 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 Summit, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
Around Summit: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Millburn Township (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Summit workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summit | – | A | A+ | 34 min | $190,304 |
| Chatham | under 2% | A | A+ | 39 min | $241,500 |
| Mountainside | under 2% | A+ | A+ | 36 min | $211,538 |
| Millburn Township | 2% | A+ | A+ | 42 min | $250,000+ |
| Short Hills | under 2% | — | — | 43 min | — |
| New Providence | 1% | A+ | A+ | 32 min | $161,599 |
| Springfield Township | under 2% | A | A | 28 min | $155,906 |
| Chatham Township | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Berkeley Heights Township | under 2% | A+ | A | 37 min | $204,658 |
Same-state neighbors only. Short Hills: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Chatham Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Summit’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 Summit: questions
What is the median household income in Summit?
$190,304 (±$34,890) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Summit?
5.5%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Summit?
34 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 24% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Summit work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (17%, 23 mi), Newark (4%, 10 mi), Morristown (3%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Summit walkable?
Summit is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 12.5 out of 20, and 31% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Summit without a car?
23% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 28% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Summit, from the people who make the trip.
More of Summit
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.