Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHousehold incomes in Spencer Township are lower than in 69% of U.S. towns
The two grades for Spencer Township are C for jobs and income and C+ for walkability. 11.8% of residents are in poverty; Ohio has 13.3%. 2% of workers have no commute at all, next to 13% for Ohio as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Spencer Township at work: what stands out
Few Spencer Township workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 13% across Ohio. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Spencer Township has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Spencer Township went from 608 in 2014 to 849 in 2024, +40%. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, 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.
Where Spencer Township’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Spencer Township is better than 26% of U.S. towns, #844 of 992 in Ohio. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Spencer Township’s grade.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Spencer Township could be anywhere from D to B+.
Each way, about 25 minutes from Spencer Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Spencer Township workers work from home, vs 13% across Ohio. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,253 commuters (the 2% 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.
In Spencer Township, services account for most jobs
849 jobs are based in Spencer Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Spencer Township, 2014 → 2024: 608 → 849. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Spencer Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The workday shuffle in and out of Spencer Township
On a workday 1,261 residents head out to work, 139 work right here, and 710 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,500 people are in Spencer Township on a workday afternoon, 18% fewer than live here.
0.61 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 2024, primary jobs.
14% of working residents work in Lima
Where Spencer Township clocks in
14% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Spencer Township
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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
In Spencer Township, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Spencer Township is more walkable than 36% of U.S. towns, #598 of 993 in Ohio. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 2.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.7% across Ohio, on an EPA index of 5.7.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,273 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). 10.7% of Spencer Township households have no vehicle (Ohio 7.5%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Spencer Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Spencer Township ranks: 3,464th of 4,771 U.S. towns of 2,100 to 4,100
| # | 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% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 37 | Jersey Township OH | 2,678 | $136K | 2.4% | 1.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 42 | Silver Lake OH | 2,504 | $140K | 2.9% | 1.4% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 47 | Evendale OH | 2,657 | $149K | 1.5% | 2.1% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,462 | Patrick Springs VA | 2,223 | $63K | 9.3% | 3.7% | 6% | C |
| 3,463 | Savanna IL | 2,699 | $48K | 18.6% | 1.7% | 26% | C |
| 3,464 | Spencer Township OH | 3,005 | $63K | 11.8% | 5.2% | 10% | C |
| 3,465 | Woodcock Township PA | 2,727 | $67K | 10.8% | 6.9% | 6% | C |
| 3,466 | Matoaca VA | 2,724 | $70K | 22.0% | 9.0% | <1% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 4,771 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 19% | 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 Spencer Township, the top three, the last and three more from Ohio.
How Spencer Township compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Amanda Township (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Spencer Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spencer Township | – | C | C+ | 25 min | $62,654 |
| Amanda Township | 3% | B+ | D− | 23 min | $98,750 |
| Jennings Township | under 3% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Marion Township | under 3% | C+ | B− | 22 min | $64,671 |
| Salem Township | under 3% | — | — | 22 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Jennings Township and Salem Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Spencer 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 2024, 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 Spencer Township: questions
What is the median household income in Spencer Township?
$62,654 (±$12,226) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $71,389 across Ohio and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Spencer Township?
11.8%, against 13.3% across Ohio and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Spencer Township?
25 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Ohio and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Spencer Township work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lima (14%, 14 mi), American Township (6%, 10 mi), Spencerville (6%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Spencer Township walkable?
Spencer Township is more walkable than 36% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 5.7 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Spencer Township without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 11% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Spencer Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Spencer Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.