Jay Lewis House · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 3.0Households in McGehee have lower incomes than those in 97% of U.S. towns
About one in three stay in McGehee for work; outside it, Dumas is the main destination (9%, 18 miles). 34.0% of residents live below the poverty line, against 16.0% across Arkansas. The two grades for McGehee are D− for jobs and income and C for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set McGehee apart
Commutes from McGehee are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 23 across Arkansas. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Arkansas worker. Time on the road ↓
Few McGehee workers work from home
Only 3% of workers work from home, against 9% across Arkansas. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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.
How McGehee earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, McGehee is better than 3% of U.S. towns, #112 of 123 in Arkansas. Unemployment holds McGehee’s grade up (5.9%, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, McGehee could be anywhere from D− to C−.
How long McGehee spends getting to work: about 17 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of McGehee workers work from home, vs 9% across Arkansas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,171 commuters (the 3% who work from home are left out). Across Arkansas: 87% 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.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 894 residents head out to work, 441 work right here, and 929 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 (1.03 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.
Where McGehee’s working residents head each day
Where McGehee clocks in
9% of workers
6% 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.
The kinds of work in McGehee
1,370 jobs are based in McGehee.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in McGehee, 2013 → 2023: 1,694 → 1,370. 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 McGehee’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far McGehee goes to work
About 28% 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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Getting around McGehee: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, McGehee is more walkable than 26% of U.S. towns, #84 of 123 in Arkansas. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.0% across Arkansas.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,212 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). 17.4% of McGehee households have no vehicle (Arkansas 5.9%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of McGehee’s commuters take a bus or train.
How McGehee compares with U.S. towns of 2,400 to 4,600
| # | 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% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 177 | Johnson AR | 3,684 | $96K | 2.2% | 1.2% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 225 | Austin AR | 4,017 | $114K | 1.6% | 1.9% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 269 | Goshen AR | 2,405 | $150K | 1.7% | 2.1% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 4,284 | Unadilla GA | 3,091 | $37K | 20.9% | 13.6% | 8% | D− |
| 4,285 | Toledo OR | 3,473 | $54K | 27.0% | 10.8% | 15% | D− |
| 4,286 | McGehee AR | 3,389 | $37K | 34.0% | 5.9% | 33% | D− |
| 4,287 | Clinton AR | 2,511 | $43K | 20.0% | 0.0% | 34% | D− |
| 4,288 | Claxton GA | 2,560 | $33K | 35.7% | 3.0% | 12% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,402 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 McGehee, the top three, the last and three more from Arkansas.
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 McGehee: questions
What is the median household income in McGehee?
$36,875 (±$7,853) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $60,773 across Arkansas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in McGehee?
34.0%, against 16.0% across Arkansas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from McGehee?
17 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Arkansas and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in McGehee work?
33% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Dumas (9%, 18 mi), Monticello (6%, 23 mi), Little Rock (4%, 94 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is McGehee walkable?
McGehee is more walkable than 26% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.7 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around McGehee without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 17% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from McGehee, from the people who make the trip.
More of McGehee
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.