Photo: Derek Jensen (Tysto) · Public domainHouseholds in Sidney have lower incomes than those in 73% of U.S. towns
4% of workers work from home (Ohio 13%). Below the poverty line: 14.2% of residents (Ohio 13.3%). For jobs and income Sidney is better than 36% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns (B−).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Sidney apart
Sidney makes and builds things
47% of the jobs based in Sidney are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Sidney residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 36%. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Sidney are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 23 across Ohio. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Ohio worker. Time on the road ↓
Sidney draws workers from far and wide
The 13,672 jobs in Sidney are filled from a wide area. Sidney’s own residents hold 25% and the ten next-biggest home towns 17%; the other 58% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Sidney gains people on a workday
About 24,000 people are in Sidney on a workday afternoon, 20% more than the 20,000 who live here: 10,000 come in to work and 6,200 head out. Day and night ↓
Few Sidney workers work from home
Only 4% of workers work from home, against 13% across Ohio. 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.
Sidney’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
Job access by car holds Sidney’s grade up (ahead of 64% of U.S. towns); household income pulls it down ($60,668, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Sidney could be anywhere from C− to B.
47% of the jobs in Sidney make or build things
13,672 jobs are based in Sidney.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sidney, 2013 → 2023: 14,674 → 13,672. 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 Sidney’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Sidney: about 17 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sidney workers work from home, vs 13% across Ohio. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9,214 commuters (the 4% 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 Sidney goes to work
Where Sidney clocks in
4% 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.
Sidney on a workday afternoon
On a workday 6,236 residents head out to work, 3,369 work right here, and 10,303 people come in from elsewhere.
About 24,000 people are in Sidney on a workday afternoon, 20% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.42 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.
Sidney’s commute, mile by mile
About 18% 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.
Sidney is a driving town
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 9,613 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). 6.5% of Sidney households have no vehicle (Ohio 7.5%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Sidney’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 1,860 U.S. towns of 14,000 to 27,000, Sidney comes 1,407th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Powell OH | 18,269 | $195K | 1.1% | 2.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Hudson OH | 23,085 | $171K | 3.7% | 1.3% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 32 | Avon OH | 25,611 | $136K | 3.0% | 1.8% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,405 | Kalamazoo Township MI | 22,523 | $58K | 11.6% | 6.3% | 6% | C+ |
| 1,406 | Niles OH | 18,116 | $51K | 16.2% | 4.2% | 15% | C+ |
| 1,407 | Sidney OH | 20,124 | $61K | 14.2% | 4.8% | 35% | C+ |
| 1,408 | Newport RI | 24,251 | $86K | 16.5% | 9.0% | 32% | C+ |
| 1,409 | Clinton Township OH | 19,781 | $61K | 14.2% | 4.9% | 35% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,860 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Sidney, the top three, the last and three more from Ohio.
How Sidney compares with the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sidney workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sidney | – | C+ | B− | 17 min | $60,668 |
| Clinton Township | under 2% | C+ | B− | 17 min | $61,378 |
| Orange Township | under 2% | B− | C− | 23 min | $110,313 |
| Franklin Township | 4% | A− | C− | 18 min | $86,862 |
| Perry Township | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Washington Township | under 2% | B+ | D | 15 min | $95,603 |
| Salem Township | under 2% | A− | D | 18 min | $88,409 |
Same-state neighbors only. Perry Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Franklin Township. Darker towns draw more of Sidney’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 Sidney: questions
What is the median household income in Sidney?
$60,668 (±$5,893) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,389 across Ohio and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sidney?
14.2%, against 13.3% across Ohio and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sidney?
17 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sidney work?
35% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Piqua (4%, 11 mi), Franklin Township (4%, 4 mi), Troy (4%, 17 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Sidney walkable?
Sidney is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.4 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Sidney without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sidney, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sidney
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.