Photo: Nyttend · Public domainRochester’s household incomes are lower than in 94% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 5.0 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 37.5 in Pittsburgh. The poverty rate is 23.6% (Pennsylvania 11.7%). Rochester grades C− for jobs and income and A+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Rochester
Commutes from Rochester are quick
The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 26 across Pennsylvania. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical Pennsylvania worker. Time on the road ↓
Rochester’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Rochester is Pittsburgh, 24 miles away as the crow flies. 8% of working residents (124) 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’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Rochester is better than 16% of U.S. towns, #983 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Job access by car holds Rochester’s grade up (ahead of 78% of U.S. towns); household income pulls it down ($43,080, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Rochester could be anywhere from D to C+.
About 18 minutes each way for Rochester’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rochester workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,495 commuters (the 5% 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.
How far Rochester goes to work
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.
The daily commute in and out of Rochester
On a workday 1,517 residents head out to work, 40 work right here, and 1,070 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,900 people are in Rochester on a workday afternoon, 13% fewer than live here.
0.71 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.
8% of working residents work in Pittsburgh
Where Rochester 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.
The 1,110 jobs based in Rochester
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rochester, 2014 → 2024: 1,319 → 1,110. 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’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Rochester
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Rochester is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns, #77 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Both inputs place Rochester 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 1,576 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 25% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 5.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 84% 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). 15.7% of Rochester households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Rochester’s commuters take a bus or train.
Rochester next to U.S. towns of 2,400 to 4,500: 3,623rd of 4,269 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 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 20 | Wallace Township PA | 3,759 | $183K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 64 | Pocopson Township PA | 4,480 | $230K | 1.3% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| 65 | West Pikeland Township PA | 4,045 | $226K | 0.9% | 2.8% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,621 | Altavista VA | 3,353 | $51K | 11.9% | 7.9% | 18% | C− |
| 3,622 | Oak Trail Shores TX | 3,040 | $34K | 16.8% | 5.4% | <1% | C− |
| 3,623 | Rochester PA | 3,358 | $43K | 23.6% | 9.4% | 3% | C− |
| 3,624 | Hazlehurst MS | 3,435 | $44K | 33.0% | 4.4% | 16% | C− |
| 3,625 | Plainfield Township MI | 3,353 | $52K | 16.1% | 3.6% | 13% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,269 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 19% | 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, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
Work in the towns next to Rochester
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Rochester workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester | – | C− | A+ | 18 min | $43,080 |
| Rochester Township | under 3% | B | D | 27 min | $60,500 |
| East Rochester | under 3% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Bridgewater | under 3% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Monaca | under 3% | B− | B+ | 32 min | $73,538 |
Same-state neighbors only. East Rochester and Bridgewater: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Rochester’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: questions
What is the median household income in Rochester?
$43,080 (±$7,686) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rochester?
23.6%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rochester?
18 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rochester work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Pittsburgh (8%, 24 mi), Cranberry Township (7%, 9 mi), Center Township (5%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Rochester walkable?
Rochester is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.7 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Rochester without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 16% of households have no car. 25% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Rochester, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rochester
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.