More people are out of work in Chester Township (6.8%) than in 81% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 37.7 in Philadelphia. Chester Township grades C+ for jobs and income and A for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 77% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Chester Township apart on work
The jobs in Chester Township pay better than its residents’ jobs
84% of the jobs based in Chester Township pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), against 56% of the jobs Chester Township residents hold. 98% of the jobs here are held by people who live outside Chester Township. The jobs ↓
Chester Township makes and builds things
50% of the jobs based in Chester Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Chester Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 8%. The jobs ↓
Chester Township and Philadelphia trade workers both ways
Philadelphia is the top workplace for Chester Township residents (21%) and also where the most people who work in Chester Township come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Commutes from Chester Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 26 across Pennsylvania. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Pennsylvania worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Income, poverty and work: Chester Township’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Chester Township is better than 35% of U.S. towns, #829 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Job access by car holds Chester Township’s grade up (ahead of 93% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Chester Township could be anywhere from C− to A−.
A place that makes things: 50% of Chester Township’s jobs are in goods
2,599 jobs are based in Chester Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Chester Township, 2014 → 2024: 2,114 → 2,599. 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 Chester Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
21% of working residents work in Philadelphia
Where Chester Township clocks in
21% 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.
Time on the road from Chester Township: about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Chester Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,667 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Pennsylvania: 81% drive alone, 4% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The workday shuffle in and out of Chester Township
On a workday 1,797 residents head out to work, 43 work right here, and 2,556 people come in from elsewhere.
About 4,800 people are in Chester Township on a workday afternoon, 19% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.41 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The commute from Chester Township, by distance
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Chester Township
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Chester Township is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns, #235 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 4.6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 8.6% across Pennsylvania.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,889 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 35% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 79% 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). 9.5% of Chester Township households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of Chester Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
2,862nd of 4,283: where Chester Township ranks among U.S. towns of 2,800 to 5,500
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 24 | Wallace Township PA | 3,759 | $183K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 29 | Edgmont Township PA | 4,706 | $137K | 2.4% | 1.1% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 68 | Pocopson Township PA | 4,480 | $230K | 1.3% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,860 | Baltimore OH | 3,110 | $60K | 12.5% | 6.6% | 8% | C+ |
| 2,861 | Kittanning PA | 3,941 | $52K | 20.7% | 1.9% | 14% | C+ |
| 2,862 | Chester Township PA | 4,068 | $58K | 16.3% | 6.8% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,863 | Suncoast Estates FL | 4,369 | $39K | 26.4% | 2.0% | 1% | C+ |
| 2,864 | Fairview GA | 5,302 | $64K | 13.1% | 4.1% | 1% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,283 | 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 Chester Township, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
The towns around Chester Township
The biggest share goes to Chester (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Chester Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester Township | – | C+ | A | 19 min | $58,125 |
| Aston Township | under 3% | B+ | A− | 27 min | $98,758 |
| Chester | 5% | C− | A+ | 23 min | $41,342 |
| Upland | 3% | B− | A+ | 19 min | $61,553 |
| Brookhaven | under 3% | A | A− | 27 min | $91,042 |
| Upper Chichester Township | under 3% | B+ | B+ | 25 min | $92,371 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Chester 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 Chester Township: questions
What is the median household income in Chester Township?
$58,125 (±$11,501) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Chester Township?
16.3%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Chester Township?
19 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Chester Township work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Philadelphia (21%, 18 mi), Chester (5%, 2 mi), Middletown Township (4%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Chester Township walkable?
Chester Township is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.5 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Chester Township without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. 35% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Chester Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Chester 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.