Photo: Connor401 · CC BY-SA 3.0At 2.2%, unemployment in York is lower than in 82% of U.S. towns
About one in ten work in York itself; outside it, Rock Hill draws the most (18%, 13 miles). The two grades for York are B− for jobs and income and B for walkability. Measured by household income, York is behind 80% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in York
York trades workers with the towns around it
York has about as many jobs (3,570) as working residents (3,690), but they are mostly different people: 3,324 residents leave for work each day while 3,204 people come in. Only 10% of the jobs in York are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of York workers cross into North Carolina
26% of York workers work outside South Carolina, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Charlotte (15%), Gastonia (2%) and Pineville (1%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Fewer jobs are based in York than ten years ago
Jobs counted in York fell from 5,141 in 2013 to 3,570 in 2023, −31%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
York workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 32 minutes each way, against 26 across South Carolina. Over a year that’s about 245 hours of commuting, 46 more than the state’s typical worker. 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: York’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, York is better than 49% of U.S. towns, #60 of 168 in South Carolina. Unemployment holds York’s grade up; household income pulls it down ($56,176, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, York could be anywhere from C to B+.
York on a workday afternoon
On a workday 3,324 residents head out to work, 366 work right here, and 3,204 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 (0.97 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.
The towns that employ York’s residents
Where York clocks in
18% of workers
15% 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.
What York’s employers do
3,570 jobs are based in York.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in York, 2013 → 2023: 5,141 → 3,570. 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 York’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from York: about 32 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of York workers work from home, vs 12% across South Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,706 commuters (the 7% 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.
The commute from York, by distance
About 19% 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.
York is a driving town
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, York is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns, #64 of 169 in South Carolina. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.4% across South Carolina.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,987 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 7.2% of York households have no vehicle (South Carolina 5.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of York’s commuters take a bus or train.
York is 1,737th of 2,878 U.S. towns of 7,000 to 14,000 on jobs and income
| # | 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 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 224 | Lake Murray of Richland SC | 7,023 | $119K | 2.0% | 2.3% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 268 | James Island SC | 12,660 | $104K | 5.6% | 1.2% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 821 | Powdersville SC | 10,771 | $85K | 9.3% | 1.7% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,735 | Gonzales LA | 13,930 | $75K | 9.0% | 7.9% | 13% | B− |
| 1,736 | Ellicott NY | 8,558 | $61K | 11.0% | 2.5% | 19% | B− |
| 1,737 | York SC | 10,620 | $56K | 15.9% | 2.2% | 10% | B− |
| 1,738 | Oak Hills CA | 9,013 | $101K | 9.7% | 8.2% | 2% | B− |
| 1,739 | Berkley CO | 10,789 | $85K | 14.1% | 8.7% | 2% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,878 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 York, the top three, the last and three more from South Carolina.
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 York: questions
What is the median household income in York?
$56,176 (±$10,268) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,324 across South Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in York?
15.9%, against 14.1% across South Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from York?
32 minutes each way on average, against 26 across South Carolina and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in York work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Rock Hill (18%, 13 mi), Charlotte (15%, 27 mi), Columbia (3%, 69 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is York walkable?
York is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 8.0 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around York without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from York, from the people who make the trip.
More of York
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.