Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHouseholds in Geistown have lower incomes than those in 68% of U.S. towns
For 22% of workers, the job is at home, next to 16% for Pennsylvania as a whole. Below the poverty line: 6.9% of residents, next to 11.7% across Pennsylvania. The two grades for Geistown are B− for jobs and income and B for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Geistown apart
Geistown and Richland Township trade workers both ways
Richland Township is the top workplace for Geistown residents (20%) and also where the most people who work in Geistown come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Geistown
55% of Geistown residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 25% of the jobs based in Geistown pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 97% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Geistown pay little
31% of the jobs based in Geistown pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. The jobs ↓
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; with 998 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Income, poverty and work: Geistown’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Geistown is better than 48% of U.S. towns. The poverty rate holds Geistown’s grade up; household income pulls it down ($63,958, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Geistown could be anywhere from C− to A−.
20% of working residents work in Richland Township
Where Geistown clocks in
20% of workers
18% 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.
Jobs in Geistown: what the 749 are
749 jobs are based in Geistown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Geistown, 2013 → 2023: 927 → 749. 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 Geistown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Geistown by day and by night
On a workday 966 residents head out to work, 32 work right here, and 717 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Geistown on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.75 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.
Commuting from Geistown: about 19 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Geistown workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 824 commuters (the 22% 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 distance from Geistown to work
About 22% 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.
In Geistown, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Geistown is more walkable than 61% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.0% 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 1,060 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). 3.1% of Geistown households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Geistown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Geistown next to U.S. towns of 1,600 to 3,100: 2,382nd of 5,328 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Newtown PA | 2,257 | $166K | 2.0% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 27 | Edgeworth PA | 1,611 | $203K | 3.0% | 3.9% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 63 | Churchill PA | 3,014 | $107K | 1.9% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,380 | Rock Creek MN | 1,772 | $95K | 8.8% | 2.7% | 2% | B− |
| 2,381 | Shiremanstown PA | 1,657 | $75K | 9.8% | 9.2% | 2% | B− |
| 2,382 | Geistown PA | 2,263 | $64K | 6.9% | 5.2% | 3% | B− |
| 2,383 | Hunlock Township PA | 2,286 | $70K | 6.0% | 4.6% | 3% | B− |
| 2,384 | Tracy MN | 2,039 | $68K | 9.9% | 0.6% | 26% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,328 | 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 Geistown, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
The towns next door employ 20% of Geistown
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Geistown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geistown | – | B− | B | 19 min | $63,958 |
| Richland Township | 20% | C+ | B+ | 17 min | $73,209 |
| Belmont | under 2% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Oakland | under 2% | — | — | 16 min | — |
| Stonycreek Township | under 2% | C+ | C | 18 min | $54,648 |
Same-state neighbors only. Belmont and Oakland: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Richland Township. Darker towns draw more of Geistown’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 Geistown: questions
What is the median household income in Geistown?
$63,958 (±$13,928) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Geistown?
6.9%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Geistown?
19 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 22% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Geistown work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Richland Township (20%, 2 mi), Johnstown (18%, 3 mi), Windber (3%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Geistown walkable?
Geistown is more walkable than 61% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 10.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Geistown without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Geistown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Geistown
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.