More people are out of work in Whetstone (8.4%) than in 90% of U.S. towns
Home is the office for 9% of workers, where Arizona as a whole has 18%. Whetstone grades D− for jobs and income and D− for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 86% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Whetstone and work: the main findings
Whetstone workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 46 minutes each way, against 25 across Arizona. Over a year that’s about 353 hours of commuting, 161 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Whetstone and Sierra Vista trade workers both ways
Sierra Vista is the top workplace for Whetstone residents (31%) and also where the most people who work in Whetstone come from (28% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Whetstone is a place people come home to
There are 194 jobs based in Whetstone, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Whetstone has about 2,200 people in it, 26% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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; with 971 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Inside Whetstone’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Whetstone is better than 2% of U.S. towns, #133 of 140 in Arizona. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Whetstone’s grade.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Whetstone could be anywhere from D− to C.
A commute of about 46 minutes in Whetstone
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 14.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Whetstone workers work from home, vs 18% across Arizona. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 863 commuters (the 9% who work from home are left out). Across Arizona: 82% 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.
31% of working residents work in Sierra Vista
Where Whetstone clocks in
15% 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 daily flow of workers through Whetstone
On a workday 939 residents head out to work, 32 work right here, and 162 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,200 people are in Whetstone on a workday afternoon, 26% fewer than live here.
0.20 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.
29% of the jobs in Whetstone make or build things
194 jobs are based in Whetstone.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Whetstone, 2013 → 2023: 145 → 194. 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 Whetstone’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many miles Whetstone commutes
About 35% 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 Whetstone: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Whetstone is more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns, #139 of 140 in Arizona. Both inputs place Whetstone 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 945 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). 0.0% of Whetstone households have no vehicle (Arizona 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Whetstone’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 2,100 to 4,000, and where Whetstone sits
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 844 | Kachina Village AZ | 3,212 | $90K | 4.3% | 1.7% | 2% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 857 | St. Johns AZ | 3,336 | $132K | 4.8% | 0.0% | 13% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,220 | Clifton AZ | 3,752 | $78K | 2.5% | 0.8% | 8% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,496 | Jay OK | 2,507 | $38K | 23.5% | 13.6% | 19% | D− |
| 4,497 | Union Township OH | 2,783 | $53K | 24.4% | 9.8% | 12% | D− |
| 4,498 | Whetstone AZ | 2,971 | $52K | 26.9% | 8.4% | 3% | D− |
| 4,499 | Marion AL | 2,602 | $36K | 20.1% | 10.1% | 27% | D− |
| 4,500 | Carrabelle FL | 2,572 | $50K | 21.6% | 8.2% | 12% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,618 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 12% | 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 Whetstone, the top three, the last and three more from Arizona.
The towns next door employ 33% of Whetstone
The biggest share goes to Sierra Vista (31%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Whetstone workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whetstone | – | D− | D− | 46 min | $51,625 |
| Sierra Vista | 31% | C | B | 18 min | $70,291 |
| Huachuca City | 2% | D− | C+ | 20 min | $50,625 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Whetstone’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 Whetstone: questions
What is the median household income in Whetstone?
$51,625 (±$9,031) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $79,964 across Arizona and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Whetstone?
26.9%, against 12.5% across Arizona and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Whetstone?
46 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Arizona and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Whetstone work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Sierra Vista (31%, 11 mi), Tucson (15%, 45 mi), Phoenix (7%, 165 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Whetstone walkable?
Whetstone is more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns (Walkability D−): an EPA walkability index of 3.5 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Whetstone without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Whetstone, from the people who make the trip.
More of Whetstone
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.