Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 3.0At 3.0%, unemployment in Jasper is lower than in 70% of U.S. towns
About one in seven stay in Jasper for work; outside it, Chattanooga is the main destination (30%, 21 miles). The two grades for Jasper are B− for jobs and income and C− for walkability. Working residents average 31 minutes each way, next to 26 for Tennessee and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Jasper in brief
Jasper is where the jobs are
Jasper has 2,368 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
30% of Jasper works in Chattanooga
438 working residents, 30%, have their main job in Chattanooga, 21 miles away. That’s more than work in Jasper itself. The commute map ↓
Jasper workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 31 minutes each way, against 26 across Tennessee. Over a year that’s about 238 hours of commuting, 38 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: Jasper’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Jasper is better than 54% of U.S. towns, #62 of 177 in Tennessee. Unemployment holds Jasper’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 46% of U.S. towns).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Jasper could be anywhere from C− to A−.
Jasper fills up on a workday
On a workday 1,243 residents head out to work, 238 work right here, and 2,130 people come in from elsewhere.
About 4,500 people are in Jasper 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.
The towns that send workers to Jasper
Where Jasper clocks in
30% of workers
6% 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.
Getting to work from Jasper takes about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Jasper workers work from home, vs 13% across Tennessee. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,319 commuters (the 19% who work from home are left out). Across Tennessee: 87% 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.
Inside Jasper’s 2,368 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Jasper, 2013 → 2023: 2,469 → 2,368. 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 Jasper’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Jasper
About 24% 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.
Few in Jasper walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Jasper is more walkable than 17% of U.S. towns, #145 of 177 in Tennessee. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.0% across Tennessee.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,620 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). 1.8% of Jasper households have no vehicle (Tennessee 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Jasper’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 2,500 to 4,900, Jasper ranks 2,064th of 4,474 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Oak Hill TN | 4,581 | $216K | 1.2% | 1.7% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 60 | Forest Hills TN | 4,473 | $250K | 6.7% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,062 | Perryville MD | 4,592 | $78K | 11.4% | 4.2% | 8% | B− |
| 2,063 | Highlands NJ | 4,350 | $92K | 10.1% | 7.5% | 8% | B− |
| 2,064 | Jasper TN | 3,636 | $73K | 10.1% | 3.0% | 16% | B− |
| 2,065 | West Milwaukee WI | 3,984 | $49K | 20.4% | 1.6% | 3% | B− |
| 2,066 | Homer Township MI | 3,952 | $117K | 10.5% | 5.7% | 3% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,474 | 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 Jasper, the top three, the last and three more from Tennessee.
Next door to Jasper
The biggest share goes to Kimball (6%).
Jobs & commute next door
Darker towns draw more of Jasper’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 Jasper: questions
What is the median household income in Jasper?
$73,013 (±$19,232) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,595 across Tennessee and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Jasper?
10.1%, against 13.8% across Tennessee and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Jasper?
31 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Tennessee and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Jasper work?
16% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chattanooga (30%, 21 mi), Kimball (6%, 3 mi), South Pittsburg (5%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Jasper walkable?
Jasper is more walkable than 17% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.4 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Jasper without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Jasper, from the people who make the trip.
More of Jasper
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.