Photo: LittleGun · CC BY-SA 3.0Union Beach has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Employers in Union Beach report 953 jobs, and 3,093 of its residents work somewhere. Jobs and income earn Union Beach A−; getting around on foot earns it A. Household incomes here are higher than in 88% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Union Beach, in brief
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Union Beach
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Union Beach is better than 83% of U.S. towns, #212 of 468 in New Jersey. The poverty rate holds Union Beach’s grade up (3.0%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment pulls it down (7.1%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Union Beach could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
How many people are in Union Beach by day
On a workday 2,960 residents head out to work, 133 work right here, and 820 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,600 people are in Union Beach on a workday afternoon, 37% 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 2023, primary jobs.
12% of working residents work in New York City
Where Union Beach clocks in
12% of workers
5% 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.
71% of the jobs in Union Beach pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Union Beach, 2013 → 2023: 991 → 953. 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 Union Beach’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Getting to work from Union Beach takes about 32 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Union Beach workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,106 commuters (the 6% 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.
The commute from Union Beach, by distance
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Union Beach
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Union Beach is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns, #177 of 468 in New Jersey. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 6.1% 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 3,321 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, 52% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 58% 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). 0.0% of Union Beach households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 6% of Union Beach’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Union Beach is 655th of 3,476 U.S. towns of 4,000 to 7,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| 4 | Norwood NJ | 5,817 | $178K | 2.8% | 0.9% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Hainesport Township NJ | 6,197 | $143K | 2.1% | 0.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 653 | Lower Alsace Township PA | 4,886 | $76K | 5.8% | 2.2% | 2% | A− |
| 654 | Sawgrass FL | 4,929 | $123K | 7.8% | 3.2% | 5% | A− |
| 655 | Union Beach NJ | 5,708 | $119K | 3.0% | 7.1% | 4% | A− |
| 656 | Pin Oak Township IL | 4,533 | $169K | 1.9% | 6.4% | 3% | A− |
| 657 | Calistoga CA | 4,954 | $85K | 5.6% | 0.0% | 26% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,476 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Union Beach, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
How Union Beach compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Hazlet Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Union Beach workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union Beach | – | A− | A | 32 min | $119,250 |
| Keansburg | under 2% | B | A+ | 26 min | $81,428 |
| Hazlet Township | 3% | A | A | 32 min | $122,020 |
| Keyport | 2% | B− | A+ | 30 min | $82,321 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Union Beach’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 Union Beach: questions
What is the median household income in Union Beach?
$119,250 (±$14,204) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Union Beach?
3.0%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Union Beach?
32 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Union Beach work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (12%, 19 mi), Middletown Township (5%, 6 mi), Edison Township (3%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Union Beach walkable?
Union Beach is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 14.1 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Union Beach without a car?
6% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. 52% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Union Beach, from the people who make the trip.
More of Union Beach
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.