Household incomes in West Hazleton trail those of 98% of U.S. towns
1% of workers work from home (Pennsylvania 16%). 34.9% of residents live below the poverty line; Pennsylvania has 11.7%. For jobs and income West Hazleton is better than 8% of U.S. towns (D); for walkability it is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns (B−).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets West Hazleton apart on work
West Hazleton is where the jobs are
West Hazleton has 4,557 jobs, 2.3 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 7,900 people are in town, 49% more than the 5,300 who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of West Hazleton works one town over
36% of working residents work in a town that borders West Hazleton: Hazle Township (28%) and Hazleton (8%). Next door ↓
Few West Hazleton workers work from home
Only 1% of workers work from home, against 16% across Pennsylvania. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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.
Income, poverty and work: West Hazleton’s grade explained
Job access by car holds West Hazleton’s grade up (ahead of 64% of U.S. towns); household income pulls it down ($34,118, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Hazleton could be anywhere from D to C.
West Hazleton by day and by night
On a workday 1,819 residents head out to work, 156 work right here, and 4,401 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,900 people are in West Hazleton on a workday afternoon, 49% more than live here.
2.3 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
About 22 minutes each way for West Hazleton’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Hazleton workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,926 commuters (the 1% 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.
The towns that send workers to West Hazleton
Where West Hazleton clocks in
8% 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.
Goods jobs make up 31% of work in West Hazleton
4,557 jobs are based in West Hazleton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Hazleton, 2013 → 2023: 5,341 → 4,557. 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 West Hazleton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from West Hazleton
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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
In West Hazleton, most people drive to work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.2% 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 1,937 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 14.4% of West Hazleton households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of West Hazleton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Where West Hazleton sits among U.S. towns of 3,700 to 7,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 30 | Wallace Township PA | 3,759 | $183K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 3% | A+ |
| 31 | West Vincent Township PA | 6,885 | $203K | 1.4% | 0.8% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 35 | Edgmont Township PA | 4,706 | $137K | 2.4% | 1.1% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,356 | New Roads LA | 4,216 | $51K | 24.6% | 10.0% | 22% | D |
| 3,357 | Alva OK | 4,880 | $41K | 25.9% | 4.9% | 43% | D |
| 3,358 | West Hazleton PA | 5,284 | $34K | 34.9% | 12.4% | 8% | D |
| 3,359 | Trenton TN | 4,137 | $59K | 29.6% | 15.6% | 23% | D |
| 3,360 | Doolittle TX | 6,203 | $36K | 55.9% | 16.4% | <1% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 3,582 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 West Hazleton, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
West Hazleton and its neighbors: 36% work next door
The biggest share goes to Hazle Township (28%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Hazleton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Hazleton | – | D | B− | 22 min | $34,118 |
| Hazle Township | 28% | C | C | 21 min | $59,134 |
| Hazleton | 8% | C− | A | 21 min | $46,177 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of West Hazleton’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 West Hazleton: questions
What is the median household income in West Hazleton?
$34,118 (±$15,671) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Hazleton?
34.9%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Hazleton?
22 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 1% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Hazleton work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Hazle Township (28%, 1 mi), Hazleton (8%, 3 mi), East Union Township (5%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Hazleton walkable?
West Hazleton is more walkable than 54% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 11.7 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Hazleton without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 14% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Hazleton, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Hazleton
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.