Jobs and the daily commute in Smoaks
Only 3% work in Smoaks; the top destination outside it is Walterboro (14%, 15 miles). 0% of workers have no commute at all, against 12% across South Carolina. A typical one-way commute lasts 34 minutes, where South Carolina has 26 and the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who works in Smoaks, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 35 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 58 people come in from elsewhere.
About 120 people are in Smoaks on a workday afternoon, 24% more than live here.
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 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting in to Smoaks: where workers come from
Where Smoaks clocks in
14% of workers
8% of workers
8% 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.
In Smoaks, 100% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
59 jobs are based in Smoaks.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Smoaks, 2013 → 2023: 89 → 59. 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 Smoaks’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Smoaks spends getting to work: about 34 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Smoaks workers work from home, vs 12% across South Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 49 commuters (the 0% 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.
How far Smoaks goes to work
About 42% 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.
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 Smoaks: questions
What is the median household income in Smoaks?
$84,583 (±$39,042) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,324 across South Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Smoaks?
2.1%, against 14.1% across South Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Smoaks?
34 minutes each way on average, against 26 across South Carolina and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Smoaks work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Walterboro (14%, 15 mi), Ehrhardt (8%, 12 mi), Columbia (8%, 66 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Smoaks without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Smoaks, from the people who make the trip.
More of Smoaks
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.