At 2.3%, unemployment in Lower Paxton Township is lower than in 80% of U.S. towns
About one in seven stay in Lower Paxton Township for work; outside it, Harrisburg is the main destination (14%, 5 miles). The two grades for Lower Paxton Township are A for jobs and income and B for walkability. Commuters spend 21 minutes getting to work on average, next to 26 for Pennsylvania and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Lower Paxton Township, in brief
Lower Paxton Township trades workers with the towns around it
Lower Paxton Township has about as many jobs (24,167) as working residents (25,111), but they are mostly different people: 21,987 residents leave for work each day while 21,043 people come in. Only 13% of the jobs in Lower Paxton Township are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Lower Paxton Township draws workers from far and wide
The 24,167 jobs in Lower Paxton Township are filled from a wide area. Lower Paxton Township’s own residents hold 13% and the ten next-biggest home towns 24%; the other 63% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Most Lower Paxton Township residents work close to home
60% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
Commutes from Lower Paxton Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 26 across Pennsylvania. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Pennsylvania worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
How Lower Paxton Township earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lower Paxton Township is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #191 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Lower Paxton Township’s grade. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lower Paxton Township could be anywhere from A− to A.
A workday in Lower Paxton Township: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 21,987 residents head out to work, 3,124 work right here, and 21,043 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.96 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Lower Paxton Township: the destinations
Where Lower Paxton Township clocks in
14% of workers
8% of workers
7% 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Lower Paxton Township
About 17% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 21 minutes each way for Lower Paxton Township’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lower Paxton Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 22,611 commuters (the 19% 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.
Jobs in Lower Paxton Township: what the 24,167 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lower Paxton Township, 2014 → 2024: 24,288 → 24,167. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lower Paxton Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
For most of Lower Paxton Township, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lower Paxton Township is more walkable than 64% of U.S. towns, #458 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.5% 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 27,896 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 48% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 10% 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). 5.2% of Lower Paxton Township households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Lower Paxton Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Lower Paxton Township ranks: 151st of 786 U.S. towns of 39,000 to 75,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Liberty Township OH | 40,625 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Northampton Township PA | 39,919 | $159K | 2.5% | 3.1% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 70 | Haverford Township PA | 50,997 | $132K | 3.4% | 4.3% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 117 | Manheim Township PA | 44,826 | $102K | 5.8% | 2.7% | 16% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 149 | Woodstock GA | 39,895 | $103K | 6.6% | 2.7% | 8% | A |
| 150 | Shakopee MN | 49,366 | $107K | 5.9% | 3.7% | 17% | A |
| 151 | Lower Paxton Township PA | 55,564 | $92K | 6.1% | 2.3% | 12% | A |
| 152 | Lancaster NY | 45,075 | $89K | 5.2% | 2.4% | 15% | A |
| 153 | Rockville MD | 67,563 | $129K | 7.6% | 3.9% | 14% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 786 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 25% | 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 Lower Paxton Township, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Lower Paxton Township and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Swatara Township (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lower Paxton Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Paxton Township | – | A | B | 21 min | $91,789 |
| West Hanover Township | under 2% | A | B | 22 min | $89,183 |
| South Hanover Township | under 2% | A | B− | 18 min | $117,585 |
| Swatara Township | 6% | B+ | B | 20 min | $80,444 |
| Rutherford | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Middle Paxton Township | under 2% | A− | D | 25 min | $80,391 |
Same-state neighbors only. Rutherford: 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 Lower Paxton 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 2024, 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 Lower Paxton Township: questions
What is the median household income in Lower Paxton Township?
$91,789 (±$2,998) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lower Paxton Township?
6.1%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lower Paxton Township?
21 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lower Paxton Township work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Harrisburg (14%, 5 mi), Derry Township (8%, 9 mi), Susquehanna Township (7%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Lower Paxton Township walkable?
Lower Paxton Township is more walkable than 64% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 9.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lower Paxton Township without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 10% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lower Paxton Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lower Paxton Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.