Photo: TNHistory1796 · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Springfield are lower than in 75% of U.S. towns
Jobs and income earn Springfield C; getting around on foot earns it C+. Below the poverty line: 22.4% of residents, next to 13.8% across Tennessee. About one in four work in Springfield; the top destination outside it is Nashville (29%, 23 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Springfield at work: what stands out
29% of Springfield works in Nashville
2,465 working residents, 29%, have their main job in Nashville, 23 miles away. That’s more than work in Springfield itself. The commute map ↓
Springfield makes and builds things
36% of the jobs based in Springfield are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Springfield residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 25%. The jobs ↓
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.
How Springfield earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Springfield is better than 34% of U.S. towns, #104 of 177 in Tennessee. Job access by car holds Springfield’s grade up (ahead of 76% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Springfield could be anywhere from C− to B−.
Where Springfield goes to work
Where Springfield clocks in
3% 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.
Springfield makes things: 36% of its jobs are in goods
11,854 jobs are based in Springfield.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Springfield, 2013 → 2023: 12,528 → 11,854. 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 Springfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The workday shuffle in and out of Springfield
On a workday 6,338 residents head out to work, 2,132 work right here, and 9,722 people come in from elsewhere.
About 23,000 people are in Springfield on a workday afternoon, 17% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.40 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 trip to work from Springfield: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Springfield workers work from home, vs 13% across Tennessee. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,190 commuters (the 6% 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.
How many miles Springfield commutes
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.
In Springfield, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Springfield is more walkable than 42% of U.S. towns, #74 of 177 in Tennessee. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.2% of 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 8,714 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 17% 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 0.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 45% 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). 9.0% of Springfield households have no vehicle (Tennessee 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Springfield’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Springfield is 1,454th of 1,860 U.S. towns of 14,000 to 27,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Nolensville TN | 15,789 | $177K | 2.1% | 2.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 108 | Farragut TN | 25,121 | $142K | 3.8% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 163 | Lakeland TN | 14,422 | $116K | 3.2% | 2.8% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,452 | Maywood CA | 23,600 | $61K | 19.4% | 7.8% | 3% | C |
| 1,453 | Oakdale CA | 23,246 | $83K | 14.8% | 10.2% | 16% | C |
| 1,454 | Springfield TN | 20,090 | $59K | 22.4% | 4.7% | 25% | C |
| 1,455 | Olivehurst CA | 18,444 | $83K | 10.6% | 7.8% | 4% | C |
| 1,456 | Dentsville SC | 15,209 | $45K | 15.7% | 5.0% | 4% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 1,860 | 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.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Springfield, the top three, the last and three more from Tennessee.
The towns around Springfield
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Springfield workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springfield | – | C | C+ | 29 min | $59,465 |
| Greenbrier | under 2% | A | D | 31 min | $85,174 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Springfield’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 Springfield: questions
What is the median household income in Springfield?
$59,465 (±$3,208) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,595 across Tennessee and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Springfield?
22.4%, against 13.8% across Tennessee and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Springfield?
29 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Tennessee and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Springfield work?
25% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Nashville (29%, 23 mi), Clarksville (3%, 27 mi), Hendersonville (3%, 20 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Springfield walkable?
Springfield is more walkable than 42% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 8.4 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Springfield without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Springfield, from the people who make the trip.
More of Springfield
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.