Photo: Lithium6ion · Public domainHousehold incomes in Wayne Township top those of 95% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 6.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 43.7 in Jersey City. Below the poverty line: 3.4% of residents; New Jersey has 9.7%. Wayne Township 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
Jobs and commuting in Wayne Township: the gist
Wayne Township trades workers with the towns around it
Wayne Township has about as many jobs (31,383) as working residents (27,304), but they are mostly different people: 24,294 residents leave for work each day while 28,373 people come in. Only 10% of the jobs in Wayne Township are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Wayne Township draws workers from far and wide
The 31,383 jobs in Wayne Township are filled from a wide area. Wayne Township’s own residents hold 10% and the ten next-biggest home towns 21%; the other 69% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Wayne Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Wayne Township is New York City, NY, 25 miles away as the crow flies. 11% of working residents (2,896) 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.
Income, poverty and work: Wayne Township’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Wayne Township is better than 93% of U.S. towns, #86 of 468 in New Jersey. Job access by car holds Wayne Township’s grade up (ahead of 98% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.9%, 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, Wayne Township could be anywhere from A to A+.
The workday shuffle in and out of Wayne Township
On a workday 24,294 residents head out to work, 3,010 work right here, and 28,373 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 (1.15 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.
11% of working residents work in New York City
Where Wayne Township clocks in
11% 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.
Wayne Township’s commute, mile by mile
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.
What the 31,383 jobs in Wayne Township are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wayne Township, 2013 → 2023: 34,597 → 31,383. 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 Wayne Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 29 minutes each way, about the NJ average
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wayne Township workers work from home, vs 17% across New Jersey. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 21,347 commuters (the 21% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Wayne Township
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Wayne Township is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns, #188 of 468 in New Jersey. Both inputs place Wayne Township 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 26,930 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 87% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 14% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 6.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 87% 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). 4.0% of Wayne Township households have no vehicle (New Jersey 11.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 6% of Wayne Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 834 U.S. towns of 38,000 to 74,000, Wayne Township comes 82nd on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Liberty Township OH | 40,625 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 33 | Marlboro Township NJ | 42,254 | $186K | 3.5% | 3.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 48 | Bridgewater Township NJ | 46,455 | $173K | 4.1% | 3.7% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 80 | Mechanicsville VA | 38,683 | $99K | 5.2% | 1.9% | 11% | A |
| 81 | St. Charles Township IL | 52,830 | $128K | 4.2% | 3.8% | 13% | A |
| 82 | Wayne Township NJ | 54,819 | $153K | 3.4% | 4.9% | 11% | A |
| 83 | Olive Branch MS | 47,563 | $101K | 4.6% | 2.4% | 19% | A |
| 84 | Cottage Grove MN | 43,604 | $121K | 4.2% | 3.7% | 11% | A |
| 85 | Mount Laurel Township NJ | 47,738 | $119K | 4.1% | 3.9% | 13% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 834 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Wayne Township, the top three, the last and three more from New Jersey.
Work in the towns next to Wayne Township
The biggest share goes to Fairfield Township (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Wayne Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Township | – | A | A | 29 min | $153,056 |
| Lincoln Park | under 2% | A− | A | 30 min | $123,397 |
| Pequannock Township | under 2% | A | A | 28 min | $120,666 |
| Totowa | under 2% | A+ | A− | 25 min | $113,563 |
| Pompton Lakes | under 2% | A | A | 30 min | $124,454 |
| Pompton Plains | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Fairfield Township | 2% | B+ | A | 22 min | $115,980 |
| Singac | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Little Falls Township | under 2% | A | A+ | 26 min | $123,307 |
| Haledon | under 2% | B+ | A | 25 min | $95,870 |
Same-state neighbors only. Pompton Plains and Singac: 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 Wayne Township’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 Wayne Township: questions
What is the median household income in Wayne Township?
$153,056 (±$8,248) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,556 across New Jersey and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wayne Township?
3.4%, against 9.7% across New Jersey and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wayne Township?
29 minutes each way on average, against 31 across New Jersey and 26 nationally. 21% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wayne Township work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (11%, 25 mi), Paterson (4%, 5 mi), Parsippany-Troy Hills Township (3%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Wayne Township walkable?
Wayne Township is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 12.0 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Wayne Township without a car?
6% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 14% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Wayne Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wayne Township
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.