Photo: Corvokarasu at English Wikipedia · Public domainHousehold incomes in Smithfield are higher than in 85% of U.S. towns
Below the poverty line: 5.4% of residents, next to 9.9% for Virginia as a whole. Smithfield grades A for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. About one in ten stay in Smithfield for work; outside it, Newport News is the main destination (23%, 9 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Smithfield apart
Smithfield and Newport News trade workers both ways
Newport News is the top workplace for Smithfield residents (23%) and also where the most people who work in Smithfield come from (14% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Smithfield makes and builds things
36% of the jobs based in Smithfield are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Smithfield residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 21%. The jobs ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Smithfield than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Smithfield fell from 6,149 in 2013 to 4,517 in 2023, −27%. 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 ↓
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.
What’s behind Smithfield’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Smithfield is better than 87% of U.S. towns, #84 of 253 in Virginia. Household income is its strongest input ($113,158, U.S. $80,734); job access by car ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (ahead of 62% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Smithfield could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
Where people from Smithfield work
Where Smithfield clocks in
23% of workers
8% of workers
7% 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 Smithfield, 36% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
4,517 jobs are based in Smithfield.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Smithfield, 2013 → 2023: 6,149 → 4,517. 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 Smithfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Smithfield on a workday afternoon
On a workday 3,263 residents head out to work, 434 work right here, and 4,083 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 (1.22 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 Smithfield: about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Smithfield workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,730 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Virginia: 83% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Where in the region Smithfield works
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 Smithfield walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Smithfield is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns, #131 of 253 in Virginia. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 5.7% across Virginia.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,396 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 18% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 18% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 42% 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). 6.0% of Smithfield households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Smithfield’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Smithfield is 562nd of 2,855 U.S. towns of 6,400 to 12,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Difficult Run VA | 9,938 | $250K | 1.4% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 560 | Williamsburg FL | 9,063 | $89K | 6.1% | 2.8% | 2% | A |
| 561 | Little Chute WI | 11,800 | $88K | 5.7% | 2.4% | 9% | A |
| 562 | Smithfield VA | 9,112 | $113K | 5.4% | 2.5% | 12% | A |
| 563 | Douglas MA | 9,545 | $152K | 4.8% | 4.3% | 6% | A |
| 564 | Bruce Township MI | 10,175 | $118K | 4.7% | 3.6% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,855 | 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 Smithfield, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Smithfield and the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Smithfield workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smithfield | – | A | B+ | 28 min | $113,158 |
| Benns Church | under 2% | B− | B+ | 24 min | $56,151 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Smithfield’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 Smithfield: questions
What is the median household income in Smithfield?
$113,158 (±$13,073) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Smithfield?
5.4%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Smithfield?
28 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Smithfield work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Newport News (23%, 9 mi), Hampton (8%, 18 mi), Norfolk (7%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Smithfield walkable?
Smithfield is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.7 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Smithfield without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 18% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Smithfield, from the people who make the trip.
More of Smithfield
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.