Photo: Randolph Carney · CC BY-SA 3.0Most of Lancaster Township commutes out: there are 0.5 jobs for every working resident
The two grades for Lancaster Township are B+ for jobs and income and B for walkability. Employers in Lancaster Township report 3,827 jobs; 8,162 of its residents have a job. Only 3% work in Lancaster Township itself; outside it, Lancaster draws the most (19%, 2 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Lancaster Township, in a few figures
Much of Lancaster Township works one town over
45% of working residents work in a town that borders Lancaster Township: Lancaster (19%), East Hempfield Township (9%) and Manheim Township (8%). Next door ↓
Most Lancaster Township residents work close to home
60% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
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 Lancaster Township
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lancaster Township is better than 70% of U.S. towns, #458 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Job access by car holds Lancaster Township’s grade up (ahead of 80% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lancaster Township could be anywhere from B− to A.
Half of Lancaster Township commutes less than 6 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.
How many people are in Lancaster Township by day
On a workday 7,899 residents head out to work, 263 work right here, and 3,564 people come in from elsewhere.
About 14,000 people are in Lancaster Township on a workday afternoon, 23% fewer 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.
The towns that employ Lancaster Township’s residents
Where Lancaster Township clocks in
9% of workers
8% 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.
The kinds of work in Lancaster Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lancaster Township, 2013 → 2023: 4,414 → 3,827. 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 Lancaster Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 24 minutes from Lancaster Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lancaster Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,933 commuters (the 13% 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.
Most trips from Lancaster Township start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lancaster Township is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns, #531 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Both inputs place Lancaster Township 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 9,138 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 3.1% of Lancaster Township households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Lancaster Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Lancaster Township is 849th of 1,915 U.S. towns of 13,000 to 25,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Lower Moreland Township PA | 14,116 | $154K | 2.6% | 2.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | West Whiteland Township PA | 20,826 | $133K | 3.0% | 1.7% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 24 | Skippack Township PA | 14,502 | $148K | 2.5% | 2.4% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 847 | Lumberton Township NJ | 13,171 | $113K | 7.5% | 7.2% | 4% | B+ |
| 848 | Vernon Township NJ | 22,965 | $116K | 4.2% | 5.4% | 11% | B+ |
| 849 | Lancaster Township PA | 18,592 | $89K | 7.0% | 4.9% | 3% | B+ |
| 850 | Coral Terrace FL | 24,895 | $80K | 10.8% | 3.8% | 5% | B+ |
| 851 | Fruitville FL | 15,172 | $82K | 8.6% | 3.6% | 10% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,915 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Lancaster Township, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Next door is work for 45% of Lancaster Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lancaster Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster Township | – | B+ | B | 24 min | $88,912 |
| Lancaster | 19% | C | A | 24 min | $63,690 |
| Pequea Township | under 2% | A+ | C− | 27 min | $109,447 |
| Manor Township | 2% | A− | C | 25 min | $89,917 |
| Millersville | under 2% | C+ | A− | 20 min | $67,866 |
| West Lampeter Township | 2% | A | C | 28 min | $110,143 |
| East Hempfield Township | 9% | A | B− | 20 min | $99,384 |
| East Lampeter Township | 5% | B+ | B | 25 min | $87,361 |
| Manheim Township | 8% | A | B+ | 20 min | $102,134 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Lancaster. Darker towns draw more of Lancaster 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 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 Lancaster Township: questions
What is the median household income in Lancaster Township?
$88,912 (±$8,997) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lancaster Township?
7.0%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lancaster Township?
24 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lancaster Township work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lancaster (19%, 2 mi), East Hempfield Township (9%, 5 mi), Manheim Township (8%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lancaster Township walkable?
Lancaster Township is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 7.6 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lancaster Township without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lancaster Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lancaster Township
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.