Photo: Bronayur at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0A job hub: Hershey has 5.3 jobs per working resident, and 27,455 people come in to work
About one in four work in Hershey itself; outside it, Derry Township draws the most (36%, 1 miles). There are 28,919 jobs in Hershey; 5,407 of its residents have a job. Commuters spend 16 minutes getting to work on average, where Pennsylvania has 26 and the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Hershey
Hershey fills up on a workday
Hershey has 28,919 jobs, 5.4 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 38,000 people are in town, more than double the 14,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Hershey are quick
The average trip to work takes 16 minutes, against 26 across Pennsylvania. That’s about 77 hours a year less on the road than the typical Pennsylvania worker. Time on the road ↓
Hershey draws workers from far and wide
The 28,919 jobs in Hershey are filled from a wide area. Hershey’s own residents hold 5% and the ten next-biggest home towns 30%; the other 65% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Hershey has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Hershey went from 19,903 in 2013 to 28,919 in 2023, +45%. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Hershey by day and by night
On a workday 3,943 residents head out to work and 1,464 work right here.
About 38,000 people are in Hershey on a workday afternoon, 165% more than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
About 16 minutes each way for Hershey’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Hershey workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,218 commuters (the 16% 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.
Who travels to work in Hershey, and from where
Where Hershey clocks in
36% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Hershey, 2013 → 2023: 19,903 → 28,919. 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 Hershey’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Miles to work from Hershey
About 18% 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.
Next door to Hershey
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Hershey workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hershey | – | — | — | 16 min | $78,587 |
| Palmdale | under 1% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| East Hanover Township | under 1% | B+ | C | 20 min | $99,922 |
| South Hanover Township | under 1% | A | B− | 18 min | $117,585 |
Same-state neighbors only. Palmdale: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Hershey’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 Hershey: questions
What is the median household income in Hershey?
$78,587 (±$7,362) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Hershey?
17.6%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Hershey?
16 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Hershey work?
27% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Derry Township (36%, 1 mi), Harrisburg (6%, 13 mi), Lower Paxton Township (4%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Hershey without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Hershey, from the people who make the trip.
More of Hershey
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.