About two in five of Bethlehem’s working residents commute to Wheeling
A typical one-way commute lasts 19 minutes, against 27 across West Virginia and 26 nationally. The two grades for Bethlehem are B+ for jobs and income and B− for walkability. Household incomes here are higher than in 60% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Bethlehem apart on work
41% of Bethlehem works in Wheeling
545 working residents, 41%, have their main job in Wheeling, 2.1 miles away across the town line. That’s 21 times as many as work in Bethlehem itself. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Bethlehem are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 27 across West Virginia. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical West Virginia worker. Time on the road ↓
Most Bethlehem residents work close to home
63% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
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 drives the Jobs & income grade in Bethlehem
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Bethlehem is better than 66% of U.S. towns, #7 of 61 in West Virginia. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Bethlehem’s grade. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Bethlehem could be anywhere from C to A.
Where Bethlehem’s working residents head each day
Where Bethlehem clocks in
41% of workers
4% of workers
4% 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.
How long Bethlehem spends getting to work: about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bethlehem workers work from home, vs 9% across West Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 938 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across West Virginia: 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.
Where in the region Bethlehem 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.
Who leaves Bethlehem for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,310 residents head out to work, 27 work right here, and 862 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,100 people are in Bethlehem on a workday afternoon, 18% fewer than live here.
0.66 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute 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.
What Bethlehem’s employers do
889 jobs are based in Bethlehem.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bethlehem, 2013 → 2023: 758 → 889. 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 Bethlehem’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Most trips from Bethlehem start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Bethlehem is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns, #47 of 61 in West Virginia. Both inputs place Bethlehem near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,037 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). 3.3% of Bethlehem households have no vehicle (West Virginia 8.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Bethlehem’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Bethlehem is 1,352nd of 4,868 U.S. towns of 1,800 to 3,400
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 953 | Williamstown WV | 2,922 | $89K | 5.2% | 1.9% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,350 | Sanbornton NH | 3,038 | $114K | 4.8% | 5.1% | 5% | B+ |
| 1,351 | Kingsbury NV | 2,209 | $96K | 1.1% | 4.5% | 16% | B+ |
| 1,352 | Bethlehem WV | 2,520 | $83K | 8.8% | 3.0% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,353 | Alaiedon Township MI | 2,933 | $94K | 7.4% | 5.7% | 6% | B+ |
| 1,354 | Congress Township OH | 3,006 | $85K | 10.8% | 0.0% | 2% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,362 | Culloden WV | 3,040 | $73K | 11.8% | 0.0% | 3% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,607 | Kenova WV | 2,841 | $54K | 9.0% | 0.0% | 9% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 4,868 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Bethlehem, the top three, the last and three more from West Virginia.
Next door is work for 41% of Bethlehem
Jobs & commute next door
The biggest share goes to Wheeling. Darker towns draw more of Bethlehem’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 Bethlehem: questions
What is the median household income in Bethlehem?
$83,409 (±$13,827) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $59,608 across West Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bethlehem?
8.8%, against 16.7% across West Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bethlehem?
19 minutes each way on average, against 27 across West Virginia and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bethlehem work?
2% work in town.
Is Bethlehem walkable?
Bethlehem is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 6.7 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bethlehem without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bethlehem, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bethlehem
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.