At 12.3%, unemployment in Champion is higher than in 97% of U.S. towns
8% of workers work from home (New York 15%). The two grades for Champion are D for jobs and income and B− for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 79% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Champion, in a few figures
Jobs & income in Champion: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Champion is better than 6% of U.S. towns, #749 of 758 in New York. Household income holds Champion’s grade up ($56,875, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Champion could be anywhere from D− to C−.
Time on the road from Champion: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Champion workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,746 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across New York: 57% drive alone, 25% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
In and out of Champion on a workday
On a workday 1,235 residents head out to work, 170 work right here, and 922 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 (0.78 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.
18% of working residents work in Watertown
Where Champion clocks in
10% 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.
Jobs in Champion: what the 1,092 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Champion, 2013 → 2023: 1,139 → 1,092. 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 Champion’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Champion goes to work
About 28% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
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.
For most of Champion, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Champion is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns, #479 of 758 in New York. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 3.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 32.9% across New York, on an EPA index of 6.2.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,902 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 12.3% of Champion households have no vehicle (New York 29.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Champion’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 3,100 to 6,000, and where Champion sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Lloyd Harbor NY | 3,587 | $250K | 2.1% | 0.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Kings Point NY | 5,710 | $211K | 0.9% | 2.4% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 21 | North Hills NY | 5,481 | $173K | 3.0% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,802 | Chariton IA | 4,347 | $47K | 17.1% | 9.1% | 31% | D |
| 3,803 | Honesdale PA | 4,417 | $47K | 19.8% | 9.8% | 24% | D |
| 3,804 | Champion NY | 4,436 | $57K | 19.0% | 12.3% | 12% | D |
| 3,805 | Harrison Township OH | 5,147 | $49K | 21.3% | 9.6% | 11% | D |
| 3,806 | Mena AR | 5,607 | $47K | 13.9% | 9.4% | 46% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 4,000 | 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 Champion, the top three, the last and three more from New York.
Work next door: 18% of Champion’s workers
The biggest share goes to Wilna (10%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Champion workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | – | D | B− | 20 min | $56,875 |
| Wilna | 10% | D | B− | 24 min | $60,213 |
| Fort Drum | under 2% | — | — | 11 min | — |
| Le Ray | 6% | C− | B− | 13 min | $63,073 |
| Carthage | under 2% | D | B− | 28 min | $58,125 |
| Denmark | under 2% | C | C+ | 23 min | $63,270 |
| Deferiet | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| West Carthage | under 2% | C− | B+ | 21 min | $49,885 |
| Rutland | 2% | C− | D | 23 min | $72,404 |
| Herrings | under 2% | — | — | — | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Fort Drum and Herrings: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Deferiet: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Champion’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 Champion: questions
What is the median household income in Champion?
$56,875 (±$12,836) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Champion?
19.0%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Champion?
20 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Champion work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Watertown (18%, 10 mi), Wilna (10%, 8 mi), Le Ray (6%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Champion walkable?
Champion is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 6.2 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Champion without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Champion, from the people who make the trip.
More of Champion
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.