Living in Herchweiler up until the mid 20th century were mainly small farmers, while the Jewish sector of the population – almost 25% of the total at times – earned its livelihood mainly from trade. From the mid 19th century, the income structure changed. More and more inhabitants found work in quarries, collieries and ironworks in the Saarland. Jews, who held more rights on the side of the old border held by the House of Leyen than they did on the other side, where the Duchy of Palatinate-Zweibrücken held sway, likely settled as traders right at the border for this reason, which allowed them not only to keep their relatively great measure of Leyen freedom but also to do business with the Zweibrücken farmers who lived just across the line. Today, for most of the inhabitants, Herchweiler is a quiet residential community for people of the most varied of occupations, most of whom must commute to work.