Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0Jobs and earnings in Palmdale, and the trip to work
Only 2% stay in Palmdale for work; outside it, Derry Township is the main destination (33%, 2 miles). 7% of workers have no commute at all; Pennsylvania has 16%. Working residents average 33 minutes each way, 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
Palmdale and work: the main findings
Palmdale workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 33 minutes each way, against 26 across Pennsylvania. Over a year that’s about 253 hours of commuting, 54 more than the state’s typical worker. Every town next door averages less (16 to 20 minutes). Time on the road ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Palmdale
59% of Palmdale residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 41% of the jobs based in Palmdale pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. 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 681 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Getting to work from Palmdale takes about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Palmdale workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 568 commuters (the 7% 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 jobs in Palmdale are in services
684 jobs are based in Palmdale.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Palmdale, 2013 → 2023: 619 → 684. 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 Palmdale’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A workday in Palmdale: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 667 residents head out to work, 14 work right here, and 670 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 (1.00 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.
Out of Palmdale to work: where people go
Where Palmdale clocks in
33% 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Palmdale
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.
Palmdale and its neighbors
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Palmdale workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palmdale | – | — | — | 33 min | $62,628 |
| Hershey | under 2% | — | — | 16 min | — |
| Palmyra | under 2% | B | A− | 20 min | $77,469 |
| North Londonderry Township | under 2% | A | B+ | 20 min | $108,548 |
Same-state neighbors only. Hershey: 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 Palmdale’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 Palmdale: questions
What is the median household income in Palmdale?
$62,628 (±$28,946) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Palmdale?
27.1%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Palmdale?
33 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Palmdale work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Derry Township (33%, 2 mi), Harrisburg (4%, 14 mi), Lower Paxton Township (4%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Palmdale without a car?
11% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Palmdale, from the people who make the trip.
More of Palmdale
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.