Photo: TnrSmith · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Grafton (5.9%) is higher than in 73% of U.S. towns
Only 5% work in Grafton; the top destination outside it is Cleveland (16%, 23 miles). For jobs and income Grafton is better than 59% of U.S. towns (B); for walkability it is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (B−). Commuters spend 27 minutes getting to work on average; Ohio averages 23, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Grafton
The figures behind Grafton’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car holds Grafton’s grade up (ahead of 74% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Grafton could be anywhere from C+ to A+.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Grafton
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.
A workday in Grafton: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 2,174 residents head out to work, 104 work right here, and 1,537 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,100 people are in Grafton on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.72 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.
Out of Grafton to work: where people go
Where Grafton clocks in
16% of workers
7% 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.
Grafton is a services town
1,641 jobs are based in Grafton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Grafton, 2013 → 2023: 1,618 → 1,641. 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 Grafton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Grafton: about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Grafton workers work from home, vs 13% across Ohio. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,160 commuters (the 8% 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.
Getting around Grafton: mostly by car
How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 3.4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.7% across Ohio, on an EPA index of 5.9.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,255 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). 3.4% of Grafton households have no vehicle (Ohio 7.5%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Grafton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Grafton is 1,608th among 3,527 U.S. towns of 4,000 to 7,800
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | The Village of Indian Hill OH | 6,114 | $235K | 3.1% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 38 | Pepper Pike OH | 6,886 | $228K | 1.8% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 49 | Independence OH | 7,456 | $116K | 2.4% | 1.5% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,606 | Ossipee NH | 4,599 | $91K | 8.1% | 1.6% | 17% | B |
| 1,607 | Chackbay LA | 5,436 | $66K | 7.4% | 1.0% | 1% | B |
| 1,608 | Grafton OH | 5,764 | $91K | 9.2% | 5.9% | 5% | B |
| 1,609 | Washington Township IN | 7,010 | $71K | 12.5% | 2.8% | 13% | B |
| 1,610 | Jackson Township IN | 4,045 | $74K | 4.8% | 3.5% | 5% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,527 | 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 Grafton, the top three, the last and three more from Ohio.
The towns around Grafton
The biggest share goes to Eaton Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Grafton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grafton | – | B | B− | 27 min | $90,724 |
| Grafton Township | under 2% | A− | D− | 38 min | $89,946 |
| Eaton Township | 3% | A− | D | 24 min | $77,143 |
| Carlisle Township | under 2% | B+ | C | 23 min | $86,944 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Grafton’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 Grafton: questions
What is the median household income in Grafton?
$90,724 (±$11,430) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,389 across Ohio and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Grafton?
9.2%, against 13.3% across Ohio and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Grafton?
27 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Grafton work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Cleveland (16%, 23 mi), Elyria (7%, 8 mi), Westlake (3%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Grafton walkable?
Grafton is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 5.9 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Grafton without a car?
2% 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 Grafton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Grafton
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.