Photo: Nyttend · Public domainRochester Township has lower unemployment (2.0%) than 85% of U.S. towns
Home is the office for 7% of workers (Pennsylvania 16%). Jobs and income earn Rochester Township B; getting around on foot earns it D. Only 4% work in Rochester Township; the top destination outside it is Pittsburgh (8%, 24 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Rochester Township apart on work
Fewer jobs are based in Rochester Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Rochester Township fell from 1,393 in 2014 to 723 in 2024, −48%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Rochester Township makes and builds things
53% of the jobs based in Rochester Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Rochester Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 18%. The jobs ↓
Most jobs in Rochester Township pay over $40,000 a year
76% of the jobs based in Rochester Township pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
Rochester Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Rochester Township is Pittsburgh, 24 miles away as the crow flies. 8% of working residents (92) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
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.
Where Rochester Township’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Rochester Township is better than 65% of U.S. towns, #523 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Unemployment holds Rochester Township’s grade up; household income pulls it down ($60,500, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Rochester Township could be anywhere from C+ to A.
Rochester Township works in goods: 53% of its jobs
723 jobs are based in Rochester Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rochester Township, 2014 → 2024: 1,393 → 723. 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 Rochester Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Miles to work from Rochester Township
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.
In and out of Rochester Township on a workday
On a workday 1,155 residents head out to work, 49 work right here, and 674 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,200 people are in Rochester Township on a workday afternoon, 18% 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 2024, primary jobs.
Where people from Rochester Township work
Where Rochester Township clocks in
8% of workers
7% of workers
5% 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.
A commute of about 27 minutes in Rochester Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rochester Township workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,202 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.
For most of Rochester Township, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Rochester Township is more walkable than 10% of U.S. towns, #985 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any 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 1,293 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). 4.0% of Rochester Township households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Rochester Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 4,797 U.S. towns of 1,900 to 3,600, Rochester Township comes 1,455th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 28 | Newtown PA | 2,257 | $166K | 2.0% | 2.3% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 60 | Churchill PA | 3,014 | $107K | 1.9% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 74 | Thornbury Township PA | 3,165 | $172K | 2.4% | 2.5% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,453 | Collegeville Township MN | 3,262 | $116K | 6.2% | 5.3% | 3% | B |
| 1,454 | Riley Township OH | 2,167 | $66K | 2.6% | 2.7% | 8% | B |
| 1,455 | Rochester Township PA | 2,698 | $61K | 9.5% | 2.0% | 4% | B |
| 1,456 | Durham OR | 1,904 | $81K | 13.9% | 1.5% | 1% | B |
| 1,457 | Loudon Township OH | 2,188 | $83K | 8.3% | 2.2% | 1% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 4,797 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 0% | 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 Rochester Township, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Next door to Rochester Township
The biggest share goes to Rochester (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Rochester Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester Township | – | B | D | 27 min | $60,500 |
| Daugherty Township | under 3% | B | D | 28 min | $87,969 |
| Rochester | 2% | C− | A+ | 18 min | $43,080 |
| Pulaski Township | under 3% | B | B | 22 min | $55,245 |
| East Rochester | under 3% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Bridgewater | under 3% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Freedom | under 3% | B− | B | 31 min | $74,327 |
| Fallston | under 3% | — | — | 29 min | — |
| New Brighton | under 3% | C+ | A | 26 min | $52,939 |
| New Sewickley Township | under 3% | B | C− | 26 min | $73,701 |
Same-state neighbors only. East Rochester, Bridgewater and Fallston: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Rochester 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 Rochester Township: questions
What is the median household income in Rochester Township?
$60,500 (±$13,476) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rochester Township?
9.5%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rochester Township?
27 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rochester Township work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Pittsburgh (8%, 24 mi), Cranberry Township (7%, 9 mi), Moon Township (5%, 14 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Rochester Township walkable?
Rochester Township is more walkable than 10% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.5 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Rochester Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Rochester Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rochester 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.