Households in Fort Plain earn less than those in 98% of U.S. towns
4% of workers have no commute at all (New York 15%). 18.5% of residents live below the poverty line, against 14.0% across New York. The two grades for Fort Plain are C− for jobs and income and B+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Fort Plain and work: the main findings
Commutes from Fort Plain are quick
The average trip to work takes 25 minutes, against 33 across New York. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical New York worker. Time on the road ↓
Few Fort Plain workers work from home
Only 4% of workers work from home, against 15% across New York. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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; with 648 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Inside Fort Plain’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Fort Plain is better than 24% of U.S. towns. Unemployment holds Fort Plain’s grade up (2.0%, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($34,738, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Fort Plain could be anywhere from D to C+.
Fort Plain’s commute takes about 25 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Fort Plain workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,047 commuters (the 4% 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.
Who commutes out of Fort Plain, and who commutes in
On a workday 584 residents head out to work, 64 work right here, and 363 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,800 people are in Fort Plain on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.66 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 2023, primary jobs.
11% of working residents work in Minden
Where Fort Plain clocks in
6% of workers
6% 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.
What Fort Plain’s employers do
427 jobs are based in Fort Plain.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Fort Plain, 2013 → 2023: 456 → 427. 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 Fort Plain’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute from Fort Plain, by distance
About 21% 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.
Few in Fort Plain walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Fort Plain is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 4.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 32.9% across New York, on an EPA index of 7.5.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,089 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). 14.1% of Fort Plain households have no vehicle (New York 29.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Fort Plain’s commuters take a bus or train.
3,794th of 5,509: where Fort Plain ranks among U.S. towns of 1,400 to 2,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Plandome NY | 1,482 | $250K | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Atlantic Beach NY | 1,723 | $166K | 1.8% | 3.1% | 3% | A+ |
| 9 | Village of the Branch NY | 1,764 | $174K | 1.5% | 3.1% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,792 | Montezuma IA | 1,417 | $66K | 12.5% | 3.8% | 21% | C− |
| 3,793 | Hurlock MD | 2,123 | $59K | 18.2% | 4.5% | 8% | C− |
| 3,794 | Fort Plain NY | 2,005 | $35K | 18.5% | 2.0% | 10% | C− |
| 3,795 | White Sulphur Springs WV | 2,133 | $46K | 23.2% | 1.4% | 10% | C− |
| 3,796 | Lafayette Township PA | 2,071 | $67K | 10.3% | 0.0% | 2% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,509 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Fort Plain, the top three, the last and three more from New York.
15% of Fort Plain works in a town next door
The biggest share goes to Minden (11%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Fort Plain workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Plain | – | C− | B+ | 25 min | $34,738 |
| Nelliston | under 3% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Minden | 11% | C | B− | 28 min | $44,195 |
| Palatine | 4% | C+ | C− | 25 min | $69,722 |
Same-state neighbors only. Nelliston: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Fort Plain’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 Fort Plain: questions
What is the median household income in Fort Plain?
$34,738 (±$21,660) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Fort Plain?
18.5%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Fort Plain?
25 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Fort Plain work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Minden (11%, 4 mi), Albany (6%, 46 mi), Canajoharie (6%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Fort Plain walkable?
Fort Plain is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.5 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Fort Plain without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 14% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Fort Plain, from the people who make the trip.
More of Fort Plain
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.