Photo: Swampyank at en.wikipedia · Public domainNorth Smithfield has 0.8 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Jobs & income A: better than 94% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #6 of 38 in Rhode Island.
Walkability B+: more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns · #22 of 38 in Rhode Island.
Household incomes here are higher than in 83% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 26 minutes each way (Rhode Island 26, U.S. 26). About one in ten work in North Smithfield; the top destination outside it is Providence (13%, 12 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What’s behind North Smithfield’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, North Smithfield is better than 94% of U.S. towns, #6 of 38 in Rhode Island. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides North Smithfield’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, North Smithfield could be anywhere from A− to A+.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 5,316 residents head out to work, 527 work right here, and 4,122 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 (0.80 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.
13% of working residents work in Providence
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where North Smithfield clocks in
13% of workers
9% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
What the 4,649 jobs in North Smithfield are
4,649 jobs are based in North Smithfield. Here is what they are, next to the jobs North Smithfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Smithfield, 2013 → 2023: 4,298 → 4,649. 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.
About 26 minutes each way, about the RI average
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Smithfield workers work from home, vs 13% across Rhode Island. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,928 commuters (the 14% who work from home are left out). Across Rhode Island: 83% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Half of North Smithfield commutes less than 12 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Most trips from North Smithfield start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, North Smithfield is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns, #22 of 38 in Rhode Island. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 5.7% across Rhode Island.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,913 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 21% 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 2.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 73% 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). 2.8% of North Smithfield households have no vehicle (Rhode Island 9.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of North Smithfield’s commuters take a bus or train.
North Smithfield is 248th of 2,526 U.S. towns of 9,000 to 18,000 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of North Smithfield, the top three, the last and three more from Rhode Island.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 159 | Barrington RI | 16,961 | $153K | 4.5% | 2.6% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 168 | Scituate RI | 10,767 | $112K | 5.0% | 1.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 223 | East Greenwich RI | 14,790 | $177K | 4.7% | 2.8% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 246 | Mapleton UT | 16,275 | $133K | 2.7% | 2.3% | 6% | A |
| 247 | Maidencreek Township PA | 9,309 | $112K | 4.9% | 2.1% | 5% | A |
| 248 | North Smithfield RI | 12,990 | $109K | 4.8% | 2.5% | 9% | A |
| 249 | Fairfax Station VA | 12,566 | $212K | 1.7% | 4.8% | 1% | A |
| 250 | Wolcott CT | 16,573 | $111K | 1.8% | 3.4% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,526 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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.
21% of North Smithfield works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Woonsocket (9%). Darker towns draw more of North Smithfield’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | North Smithfield workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Smithfield | – | A | B+ | 26 min | $108,866 |
| Lincoln | 4% | B+ | B | 24 min | $104,821 |
| Woonsocket | 9% | C | A | 29 min | $61,059 |
| Smithfield | 6% | B+ | A | 25 min | $102,077 |
| Burrillville | under 3% | B+ | C | 35 min | $119,813 |
| Cumberland Hill | under 3% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Cumberland | 2% | A | B | 26 min | $117,522 |
Same-state neighbors only. Cumberland Hill: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 North Smithfield: questions
What is the median household income in North Smithfield?
$108,866 (±$12,302) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $87,796 across Rhode Island and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Smithfield?
4.8%, against 11.2% across Rhode Island and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Smithfield?
26 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Rhode Island and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Smithfield work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Providence (13%, 12 mi), Woonsocket (9%, 3 mi), Smithfield (6%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is North Smithfield walkable?
North Smithfield is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Smithfield without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Smithfield, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Smithfield
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.