Photo: Luigi Novi · CC BY 4.0Unemployment in Union City (9.4%) is higher than in 93% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Union City is better than 32% of U.S. towns (C); for walkability it is among the most walkable U.S. towns (A+). Home is the office for 8% of workers, against 17% across New Jersey. About one in ten work in Union City itself; outside it, New York City draws the most (26%, 9 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Union City, in a few figures
Most Union City residents work close to home
75% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about three in four. Only 4% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
A lot of Union City workers cross into New York
23% of Union City workers work outside New Jersey, most of them in New York, the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
Short distances, slow trips
Half of Union City’s working residents have a job less than 8 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 33 minutes, longer than the New Jersey average of 31. The reason is the way people travel: 40% of commuters take transit, against 4% nationally. How people get to work ↓ Time on the road ↓
Union City and New York City trade workers both ways
New York City is the top workplace for Union City residents (26%) and also where the most people who work in Union City come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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.
The figures behind Union City’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car holds Union City’s grade up (among the top U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Union City could be anywhere from C to C+.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Union City
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.
Out of Union City to work: where people go
Where Union City clocks in
26% of workers
7% 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.
How long Union City spends getting to work: about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Union City workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 29,036 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 Union City: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 23,333 residents head out to work, 3,101 work right here, and 9,300 people come in from elsewhere.
About 53,000 people are in Union City on a workday afternoon, 21% fewer than live here.
0.47 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
12,401 jobs are based in Union City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Union City, 2014 → 2024: 9,866 → 12,401. 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 Union City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Union City is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Union City is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #3 of 468 in New Jersey. Both inputs place Union City near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 31,535 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, 100% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 47.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, among the most 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). 41.3% of Union City households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 40% of Union City’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Union City is 551st of 648 U.S. towns of 47,000 to 90,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 45 | Wayne Township NJ | 54,819 | $153K | 3.4% | 4.9% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 47 | Mount Laurel Township NJ | 47,738 | $119K | 4.1% | 3.9% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 61 | Evesham Township NJ | 49,525 | $119K | 3.6% | 4.3% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 549 | Huntington Park CA | 51,544 | $60K | 18.3% | 9.5% | 5% | C |
| 550 | Bradenton FL | 58,014 | $61K | 14.8% | 6.3% | 18% | C |
| 551 | Union City NJ | 66,656 | $64K | 23.1% | 9.4% | 12% | C |
| 552 | Middletown OH | 52,146 | $57K | 17.1% | 5.9% | 14% | C |
| 553 | Euclid OH | 47,962 | $50K | 16.6% | 6.1% | 10% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 648 | Pahrump NV | 47,347 | $62K | 13.7% | 8.5% | 27% | 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 City, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
Next door is work for 15% of Union City
The biggest share goes to Jersey City (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Union City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union City | – | C | A+ | 33 min | $64,310 |
| North Bergen Township | 3% | B | A+ | 33 min | $78,911 |
| Weehawken Township | under 2% | A | A+ | 37 min | $127,763 |
| Jersey City | 7% | B | A+ | 37 min | $97,710 |
| West New York | 2% | C+ | A+ | 35 min | $71,729 |
| Hoboken | 3% | A | A+ | 37 min | $180,579 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Union City’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 Union City: questions
What is the median household income in Union City?
$64,310 (±$4,602) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Union City?
23.1%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Union City?
33 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 Union City work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (26%, 9 mi), Jersey City (7%, 4 mi), Secaucus (4%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Union City walkable?
Union City is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 15.5 out of 20, and 51% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Union City without a car?
40% of commuters take transit and 41% of households have no car. 100% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Union City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Union City
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.