Household incomes in Colwyn trail those of 91% of U.S. towns
Colwyn grades C− for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Poverty touches 34.9% of residents, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania. Working from home is the commute for 5% of workers; Pennsylvania has 16%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Colwyn
Short distances, slow trips
Half of Colwyn’s working residents have a job less than 7 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 34 minutes, longer than the Pennsylvania average of 26. Time on the road ↓
Colwyn and Philadelphia trade workers both ways
Philadelphia is the top workplace for Colwyn residents (31%) and also where the most people who work in Colwyn come from (37% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Most Colwyn residents work close to home
65% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. Only 7% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
Colwyn is a place people come home to
There are 291 jobs based in Colwyn, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Colwyn has about 1,600 people in it, 35% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Colwyn
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Colwyn is better than 18% of U.S. towns. Job access by car holds Colwyn’s grade up (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (21.2%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Colwyn could be anywhere from D to C+.
Getting to work from Colwyn takes about 34 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Colwyn workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 867 commuters (the 5% 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.
31% of working residents work in Philadelphia
Where Colwyn clocks in
31% of workers
4% of workers
3% 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.
How far it is to work from Colwyn
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.
Colwyn quiets down on a workday
On a workday 1,146 residents head out to work, 12 work right here, and 279 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,600 people are in Colwyn on a workday afternoon, 35% fewer than live here.
0.25 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 2023, primary jobs.
Most jobs in Colwyn are in services
291 jobs are based in Colwyn.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Colwyn, 2013 → 2023: 296 → 291. 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 Colwyn’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Colwyn is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Colwyn is among the most walkable U.S. towns. Both inputs place Colwyn near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 911 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, 100% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 17.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 97% 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). 29.5% of Colwyn households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 26% of Colwyn’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 1,700 to 3,300, Colwyn ranks 4,075th of 5,207 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Newtown PA | 2,257 | $166K | 2.0% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 64 | Churchill PA | 3,014 | $107K | 1.9% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Thornbury Township PA | 3,165 | $172K | 2.4% | 2.5% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,073 | White Pigeon MI | 1,824 | $51K | 26.0% | 5.6% | 6% | C− |
| 4,074 | Pagedale MO | 2,511 | $31K | 26.1% | 11.0% | 2% | C− |
| 4,075 | Colwyn PA | 2,465 | $47K | 34.9% | 21.2% | 1% | C− |
| 4,076 | Electra TX | 2,238 | $69K | 19.7% | 2.7% | 23% | C− |
| 4,077 | Fort Fairfield ME | 3,285 | $71K | 10.3% | 9.1% | 12% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,207 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Colwyn, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Colwyn and its neighbors: 33% work next door
The biggest share goes to Philadelphia (31%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Colwyn workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colwyn | – | C− | A+ | 34 min | $46,935 |
| Philadelphia | 31% | C | A+ | 32 min | $61,953 |
| Sharon Hill | under 2% | C | A+ | 36 min | $75,130 |
| Darby | 2% | C− | A+ | 37 min | $39,863 |
| Darby Township | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Darby Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Colwyn’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 Colwyn: questions
What is the median household income in Colwyn?
$46,935 (±$18,049) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Colwyn?
34.9%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Colwyn?
34 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Colwyn work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Philadelphia (31%, 9 mi), Lower Merion Township (4%, 8 mi), Upper Darby Township (3%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Colwyn walkable?
Colwyn is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.4 out of 20, and 26% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Colwyn without a car?
26% of commuters take transit and 30% of households have no car. 100% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Colwyn, from the people who make the trip.
More of Colwyn
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.