Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHousehold incomes in Clay Township are lower than in 98% of U.S. towns
Below the poverty line: 27.1% of residents, against 13.3% across Ohio. Jobs and income earn Clay Township C−; getting around on foot earns it D. Only 5% work in Clay Township; the top destination outside it is Portsmouth (32%, 3 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Clay Township, in brief
Clay Township trades workers with the towns around it
Clay Township has about as many jobs (1,348) as working residents (1,470), but they are mostly different people: 1,403 residents leave for work each day while 1,281 people come in. Only 5% of the jobs in Clay Township are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Short distances, slow trips
Half of Clay Township’s working residents have a job less than 8 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 30 minutes, longer than the Ohio average of 23. Time on the road ↓
Clay Township and Portsmouth trade workers both ways
Portsmouth is the top workplace for Clay Township residents (32%) and also where the most people who work in Clay Township come from (17% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Clay Township has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Clay Township went from 890 in 2013 to 1,348 in 2023, +51%. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Clay Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Clay Township is better than 16% of U.S. towns, #920 of 992 in Ohio. Unemployment holds Clay Township’s grade up (3.2%, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($35,530, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Clay Township could be anywhere from D− to C+.
Who leaves Clay Township for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,403 residents head out to work, 67 work right here, and 1,281 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 (0.92 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.
Each way, about 30 minutes from Clay Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Clay Township workers work from home, vs 13% across Ohio. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,187 commuters (the 9% who work from home are left out). Across Ohio: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Where the trip to work from Clay Township ends
Where Clay Township clocks in
32% 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.
The 1,348 jobs based in Clay Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Clay Township, 2013 → 2023: 890 → 1,348. 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 Clay Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Clay Township
About 25% 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.
Most of Clay Township commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Clay Township is more walkable than 13% of U.S. towns, #851 of 993 in Ohio. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.7% across Ohio.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,301 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). 2.9% of Clay Township households have no vehicle (Ohio 7.5%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Clay Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Clay Township ranks: 3,706th of 4,402 U.S. towns of 2,400 to 4,600
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 41 | Jersey Township OH | 2,678 | $136K | 2.4% | 1.2% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 47 | Silver Lake OH | 2,504 | $140K | 2.9% | 1.4% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 51 | Evendale OH | 2,657 | $149K | 1.5% | 2.1% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,704 | Paulding OH | 3,517 | $54K | 11.9% | 9.1% | 18% | C− |
| 3,705 | Tool TX | 2,427 | $71K | 17.3% | 7.1% | 4% | C− |
| 3,706 | Clay Township OH | 3,418 | $36K | 27.1% | 3.2% | 5% | C− |
| 3,707 | Lenwood CA | 3,383 | $79K | 15.2% | 8.6% | 1% | C− |
| 3,708 | Blanchester OH | 4,250 | $55K | 13.2% | 10.8% | 10% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,402 | 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 Clay Township, the top three, the last and three more from Ohio.
34% of Clay Township works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Clay Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay Township | – | C− | D | 30 min | $35,530 |
| Washington Township | under 2% | D | D | 25 min | $45,188 |
| Portsmouth | 32% | D | A− | 21 min | $34,713 |
| Rush Township | under 2% | D | D− | 43 min | $55,925 |
| Harrison Township | under 2% | C− | D− | 27 min | $51,967 |
| Jefferson Township | under 2% | C | D | 26 min | $68,345 |
| Valley Township | 2% | C− | C | 26 min | $64,340 |
| Porter Township | under 2% | C− | C+ | 27 min | $58,534 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Portsmouth. Darker towns draw more of Clay 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 Clay Township: questions
What is the median household income in Clay Township?
$35,530 (±$16,918) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,389 across Ohio and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Clay Township?
27.1%, against 13.3% across Ohio and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Clay Township?
30 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Clay Township work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portsmouth (32%, 3 mi), Scioto Township (4%, 14 mi), New Boston (3%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Clay Township walkable?
Clay Township is more walkable than 13% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.9 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Clay Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Clay Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Clay 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.