Photo: Nyttend · Public domainWith 0.2 jobs for every working resident, most of Gratis works elsewhere
Only 1% work in Gratis itself; outside it, Middletown draws the most (10%, 13 miles). 64 jobs are based in Gratis for 292 working residents. The trip to work takes 31 minutes on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Gratis at work: what stands out
Gratis is a place people come home to
There are 64 jobs based in Gratis, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Gratis has about 610 people in it, 27% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Gratis workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 31 minutes each way, against 23 across Ohio. Over a year that’s about 238 hours of commuting, 61 more than the state’s typical worker. 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 292 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How a workday changes Gratis
On a workday 289 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 61 people come in from elsewhere.
About 610 people are in Gratis on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
About 31 minutes to work from Gratis
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Gratis workers work from home, vs 13% across Ohio. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 273 commuters (the 13% 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.
The places Gratis commutes to
Where Gratis clocks in
10% of workers
6% of workers
5% 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 Gratis: what the 64 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Gratis, 2013 → 2023: 36 → 64. 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 Gratis’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The distance from Gratis to work
About 20% 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.
How Gratis compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Gratis Township (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Gratis workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gratis | – | — | — | 31 min | $77,500 |
| Gratis Township | 5% | B | D | 29 min | $88,523 |
| Lanier Township | under 3% | C+ | C− | 24 min | $62,689 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Gratis’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 Gratis: questions
What is the median household income in Gratis?
$77,500 (±$16,036) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,389 across Ohio and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Gratis?
7.4%, against 13.3% across Ohio and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Gratis?
31 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Gratis work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Middletown (10%, 13 mi), Eaton (6%, 9 mi), Gratis Township (5%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Gratis without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Gratis, from the people who make the trip.
More of Gratis
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.