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Work & commute in Temple · A commuter town

99% of Temple’s working residents leave town for work

Most working residents leave Temple for work: only 1% work in town. The top destinations are Muhlenberg (12%), Reading (11%) and Maxatawny (7%). Half commute less than 9 miles.

Work in town
1%
8 of 909 working residents
Typical commute
9 mi
half travel less, straight-line
Time each way
22 min
Less than PA (26 min)
Work from home
10%
Less than PA (16%)
Jobs based here
589
A commuter town

What kind of work town is Temple?

Read from the numbers below. The page puts what stands out first.

★ What stands out · The commute map

12% of working residents work in Muhlenberg

A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.

West Reading: 24 residents work here (3%)LaureldaleShillingtonWyomissing: 40 residents work here (4%)Reading: 96 residents work here (11%)BernSpring: 41 residents work here (5%)Ontelaunee: 27 residents work here (3%)Cumru: 23 residents work here (3%)Upper Macungie: 17 residents work here (2%)Lower AlsaceMaidencreek: 29 residents work here (3%)Muhlenberg: 108 residents work here (12%)ExeterMaxatawny: 64 residents work here (7%)TempleSouth TempleMuhlenbergReadingMaxatawnySpringWyomissingMaidencreekTemple
1
Muhlenberg0.9 mi away
12%108
2
Reading4.8 mi away
11%96
3
Maxatawny12.4 mi away
7%64
4
Spring9.1 mi away
5%41
5
Wyomissing5.6 mi away
4%40
6
Maidencreek4.4 mi away
3%29
7
Ontelaunee3.2 mi away
3%27
8
West Reading5.3 mi away
3%24
9
Cumru9.4 mi away
3%23
10
Upper Macungie19.2 mi away
2%17
Everywhere elseother towns and states
48%440
The top trips

Where Temple clocks in

Lines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.

The jobs

Temple makes things: 56% of its jobs are in goods

589 jobs are based in Temple. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Temple’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in TempleJobs Temple residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms56%30%
Trade, transport & utilities9%21%
Services: health, schools, offices35%49%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less22%12%
$1,251–$3,333 a month26%26%
Over $3,333 a month52%62%

Who does it

29 or younger24%24%
30 to 5444%52%
55 and older32%24%
−8%

Jobs based in Temple, 2013 → 2023: 637 → 589. 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.

Time on the road

About 22 minutes each way, quicker than most of Pennsylvania

From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.

A year of commuting
166 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.9 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Temple22 min
Pennsylvania26 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
10%

of Temple workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.

About 1 in 10
Day and night

Temple quiets down on a workday

On a workday 901 residents head out to work, 8 work right here, and 581 people come in from elsewhere.

901live here, work elsewhere
8live and work here
581work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night2,100
Workday1,800
2,100live here− 900head out to work+ 580come in to work= 1,800on a workday

About 1,800 people are in Temple on a workday afternoon, 15% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.65jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.65 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.

How far

Half of Temple commutes less than 9 miles

Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

10 mi25 mi30 miMuhlenberg: 12% · 0.9 miReading: 11% · 4.8 miMaxatawny: 7% · 12.4 miSpring: 5% · 9.1 miWyomissing: 4% · 5.6 miMaidencreek: 3% · 4.4 miOntelaunee: 3% · 3.2 miWest Reading: 3% · 5.3 miCumru: 3% · 9.4 miUpper Macungie: 2% · 19.2 miMuhlenberg 12%Reading 11%Maxatawny 7%Spring 5%Temple
TempleTop destinations (size = commuters)
53%Under 10 mi482 residents
19%10–24 mi171 residents
17%25–50 mi155 residents
11%Over 50 mi100 residents

Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.

Next door

Temple and the towns next door

Darker towns draw more of Temple’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

South Temple: few work hereSouth TempleTemple
10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%
How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Every worker, home to work. The Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.
  • Where the employer says. A job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.
  • Two surveys. Flows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: the Census American Community Survey.
  • Straight lines. Distances are as the crow flies between home and work. Roads, rivers and traffic make the real trip longer.
Beyond the commute

More of Temple

Temple home →

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Temple, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
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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.

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