Photo: Rivers Langley; SaveRivers · CC BY-SA 3.0Alexandria has 0.5 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Jobs and income earn Alexandria B; getting around on foot earns it D. There are 769 jobs in Alexandria, and 1,536 of its residents work somewhere. Only 4% stay in Alexandria for work; outside it, Anniston is the main destination (26%, 7 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Alexandria, in a few figures
Stores, warehouses and trucking
44% of the jobs in Alexandria are in trade, transport and utilities, against 19% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Alexandria
57% of Alexandria residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 38% of the jobs based in Alexandria pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 96% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Alexandria has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Alexandria went from 544 in 2014 to 769 in 2024, +41%. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Alexandria pay little
28% of the jobs based in Alexandria pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Alexandria
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Alexandria is better than 64% of U.S. towns, #47 of 187 in Alabama. Unemployment holds Alexandria’s grade up (1.7%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 42% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Alexandria could be anywhere from C to A.
The kinds of work in Alexandria
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Alexandria, 2014 → 2024: 544 → 769. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Alexandria’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Alexandria
On a workday 1,478 residents head out to work, 58 work right here, and 711 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,700 people are in Alexandria on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Where the trip to work from Alexandria ends
Where Alexandria clocks in
26% 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.
The trip to work from Alexandria: 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 Alexandria workers work from home, vs 9% across Alabama. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,691 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across Alabama: 88% 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.
The commute from Alexandria, by distance
About 24% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The commute in Alexandria is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Alexandria is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns, #158 of 187 in Alabama. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 1.7% across Alabama.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,842 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). 0.8% of Alexandria households have no vehicle (Alabama 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Alexandria’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Alexandria is 1,565th among 4,535 U.S. towns of 2,400 to 4,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 96 | Indian Springs Village AL | 2,553 | $137K | 3.4% | 1.7% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 117 | Eagle Point AL | 3,110 | $152K | 3.2% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 184 | Priceville AL | 3,952 | $117K | 2.2% | 0.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,563 | Cedar Creek TX | 4,440 | $74K | 14.2% | 1.5% | <1% | B |
| 1,564 | Combine TX | 2,769 | $95K | 6.3% | 10.0% | <1% | B |
| 1,565 | Alexandria AL | 3,475 | $85K | 11.0% | 1.7% | 4% | B |
| 1,566 | Ahtanum WA | 3,777 | $96K | 2.6% | 7.3% | 5% | B |
| 1,567 | Truro MA | 2,483 | $119K | 4.4% | 0.0% | 17% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 4,535 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 19% | 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 Alexandria, the top three, the last and three more from Alabama.
Next door to Alexandria
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Alexandria workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandria | – | B | D | 28 min | $85,089 |
| Saks | under 2% | C− | C− | 23 min | $49,753 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Alexandria’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 2024, 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 Alexandria: questions
What is the median household income in Alexandria?
$85,089 (±$20,430) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $63,999 across Alabama and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Alexandria?
11.0%, against 15.6% across Alabama and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Alexandria?
28 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Alabama and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Alexandria work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Anniston (26%, 7 mi), Gadsden (8%, 19 mi), Oxford (7%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Alexandria walkable?
Alexandria is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 6.0 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Alexandria without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Alexandria, from the people who make the trip.
More of Alexandria
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.