Fort Hill · Photo: blahedo · CC BY-SA 2.5Earning a living in Clemson University
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 5.3 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 2.2 in North Charleston. Getting around Clemson University on foot earns A+. Only 1% work in Clemson University; the top destination outside it is Clemson (9%, 2 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Clemson University
A big share show a job far from home
69% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Jobs in Clemson University have more than doubled in ten years
Jobs based in Clemson University went from 458 in 2014 to 1,201 in 2024, +162%. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Clemson University pay little
47% of the jobs based in Clemson University pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 43% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. The jobs ↓
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; with 732 working residents, small shifts move the shares; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Where in the region Clemson University works
About 69% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Clemson University is a services town
1,201 jobs are based in Clemson University.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Clemson University, 2014 → 2024: 458 → 1,201. 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 Clemson University’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The workday shuffle in and out of Clemson University
On a workday 724 residents head out to work, 8 work right here, and 1,193 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.
1.6 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 2024, primary jobs.
Where Clemson University’s workers come from
Where Clemson University clocks in
5% of workers
3% 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 trip to work from Clemson University: about 14 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Clemson University workers work from home, vs 12% across South Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,282 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across South Carolina: 86% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Clemson University is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Clemson University is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #1 of 169 in South Carolina. Both inputs place Clemson University 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 1,429 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, 85% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 5.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 85% 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). 0.0% of Clemson University households have no vehicle (South Carolina 5.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Clemson University’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Clemson University compares with the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Clemson University workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clemson University | – | — | A+ | 14 min | — |
| Clemson | 9% | B+ | A | 19 min | $49,520 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Clemson. Darker towns draw more of Clemson University’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 Clemson University: questions
What is the poverty rate in Clemson University?
74.7%, against 14.1% across South Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Clemson University?
14 minutes each way on average, against 26 across South Carolina and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Clemson University work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Clemson (9%, 2 mi), Columbia (5%, 119 mi), North Charleston (3%, 200 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Clemson University walkable?
Clemson University is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.6 out of 20, and 31% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Clemson University without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. 85% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Clemson University, from the people who make the trip.
More of Clemson University
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.