Photo: M.O. Stevens · Public domainHouseholds in North Plains have higher incomes than those in 87% of U.S. towns
Jobs and income earn North Plains A−; getting around on foot earns it B. 2.9% of residents are in poverty; Oregon has 11.9%. Only 1% work in North Plains; the top destination outside it is Hillsboro (32%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets North Plains apart on work
North Plains and Hillsboro trade workers both ways
Hillsboro is the top workplace for North Plains residents (32%) and also where the most people who work in North Plains come from (18% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
77% of North Plains’ working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data, and so do 74% of the jobs based in North Plains. The jobs ↓
North Plains makes and builds things
41% of the jobs based in North Plains are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs North Plains residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 29%. The jobs ↓
North Plains has added jobs fast
Jobs based in North Plains went from 771 in 2014 to 1,119 in 2024, +45%. 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.
The figures behind North Plains’ Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, North Plains is better than 80% of U.S. towns, #17 of 142 in Oregon. The poverty rate holds North Plains’ grade up; unemployment pulls it down (6.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, North Plains could be anywhere from B to A+.
Commuting out of North Plains: the destinations
Where North Plains clocks in
32% of workers
7% 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.
Factories, building and farms: 41% of the jobs in North Plains
1,119 jobs are based in North Plains.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Plains, 2014 → 2024: 771 → 1,119. 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 North Plains’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily flow of workers through North Plains
On a workday 1,720 residents head out to work, 26 work right here, and 1,093 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,800 people are in North Plains on a workday afternoon, 18% fewer than live here.
0.64 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.
North Plains’ commute takes about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Plains workers work from home, vs 19% across Oregon. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,244 commuters (the 23% who work from home are left out). Across Oregon: 80% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Short hops and long hauls from North Plains
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.
Getting around North Plains: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Plains is more walkable than 60% of U.S. towns, #121 of 142 in Oregon. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 8.4% across Oregon.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,625 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 96% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 96% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 57% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 0.7% of North Plains households have no vehicle (Oregon 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of North Plains’ commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, North Plains is 792nd 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% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 237 | Hubbard OR | 3,399 | $102K | 3.6% | 1.6% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 370 | Millersburg OR | 3,583 | $125K | 5.1% | 1.5% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 790 | Darby Township OH | 2,813 | $135K | 1.6% | 7.1% | 2% | A− |
| 791 | Mukwa WI | 2,793 | $105K | 5.1% | 2.5% | 1% | A− |
| 792 | North Plains OR | 3,414 | $118K | 2.9% | 6.4% | 1% | A− |
| 793 | Hopewell Township OH | 3,200 | $106K | 7.7% | 0.8% | 2% | A− |
| 794 | Upper Oxford Township PA | 2,595 | $115K | 6.7% | 3.0% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 831 | Metzger OR | 3,714 | $91K | 7.6% | 3.8% | 1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,402 | 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 North Plains, the top three, the last and three more from Oregon.
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 North Plains: questions
What is the median household income in North Plains?
$117,639 (±$27,218) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,011 across Oregon and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Plains?
2.9%, against 11.9% across Oregon and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Plains?
26 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Oregon and 26 nationally. 23% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Plains work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Hillsboro (32%, 6 mi), Portland (21%, 17 mi), Beaverton (7%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is North Plains walkable?
North Plains is more walkable than 60% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 13.9 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Plains without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 96% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Plains, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Plains
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.