Photo: Dough4872 · Public domainHouseholds in Kutztown have lower incomes than those in 84% of U.S. towns
About one in ten stay in Kutztown for work; outside it, Maxatawny Township is the main destination (13%, 2 miles). Below the poverty line: 20.6% of residents (Pennsylvania 11.7%). Kutztown grades C for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The figures behind Kutztown’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Kutztown is better than 26% of U.S. towns, #903 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Job access by car holds Kutztown’s grade up (ahead of 79% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Kutztown could be anywhere from D to B+.
Who leaves Kutztown for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,870 residents head out to work, 177 work right here, and 1,057 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,400 people are in Kutztown on a workday afternoon, 19% fewer than live here.
0.60 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.
Commuting out of Kutztown: the destinations
Where Kutztown clocks in
13% of workers
7% of workers
4% 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 Kutztown: what the 1,234 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Kutztown, 2013 → 2023: 1,613 → 1,234. 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 Kutztown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Kutztown: about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Kutztown workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,836 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.
Half of Kutztown commutes less than 15 miles
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.
Kutztown is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Kutztown is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns, #175 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Both inputs place Kutztown 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 2,087 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). 9.4% of Kutztown households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Kutztown’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Kutztown is 3,006th of 3,962 U.S. towns of 3,000 to 5,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Wallace Township PA | 3,759 | $183K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Edgmont Township PA | 4,706 | $137K | 2.4% | 1.1% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 69 | Pocopson Township PA | 4,480 | $230K | 1.3% | 2.2% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,004 | Armona CA | 3,890 | $64K | 11.2% | 17.2% | 5% | C |
| 3,005 | Salem MO | 4,674 | $44K | 11.1% | 3.0% | 28% | C |
| 3,006 | Kutztown PA | 4,255 | $53K | 20.6% | 6.2% | 9% | C |
| 3,007 | Vassalboro ME | 4,647 | $72K | 12.0% | 7.4% | 4% | C |
| 3,008 | Evergreen Township MI | 3,063 | $59K | 13.4% | 3.3% | 3% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 3,962 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Kutztown, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Kutztown and the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Kutztown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kutztown | – | C | A | 24 min | $53,090 |
| Kutztown University | under 2% | — | — | 12 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Kutztown University: 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 Kutztown’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 Kutztown: questions
What is the median household income in Kutztown?
$53,090 (±$14,368) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Kutztown?
20.6%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Kutztown?
24 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Kutztown work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Maxatawny Township (13%, 2 mi), Upper Macungie Township (7%, 9 mi), Allentown (4%, 16 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Kutztown walkable?
Kutztown is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.1 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Kutztown without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Kutztown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Kutztown
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.