Zane Grey Estate · Photo: Nathan Simmons · CC BY-SA 3.0Altadena’s household incomes are higher than in 91% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 4.2 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 17.5 in Los Angeles. Below the poverty line: 7.9% of residents, where California as a whole has 12.0%. Altadena grades A− for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Altadena: the figures worth knowing
Altadena and Los Angeles trade workers both ways
Los Angeles is the top workplace for Altadena residents (28%) and also where the most people who work in Altadena come from (18% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Home offices are common in Altadena
25% of Altadena workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Altadena has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Altadena went from 4,470 in 2013 to 6,046 in 2023, +35%. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Altadena
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Altadena is better than 77% of U.S. towns, #212 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds Altadena’s grade up (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Altadena could be anywhere from B+ to A.
28% of working residents work in Los Angeles
Where Altadena clocks in
17% 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.
About 28 minutes to work from Altadena
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Altadena workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 15,111 commuters (the 25% who work from home are left out). Across California: 79% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Services make up most of the work in Altadena
6,046 jobs are based in Altadena.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Altadena, 2013 → 2023: 4,470 → 6,046. 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 Altadena’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Altadena on a workday afternoon
On a workday 17,469 residents head out to work, 889 work right here, and 5,157 people come in from elsewhere.
About 29,000 people are in Altadena on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
0.33 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.
Miles to work from Altadena
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.
Altadena is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Altadena is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns, #311 of 847 in California. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 7.1% across California.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 20,252 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 92% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 36% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 81% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 3.8% of Altadena households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Altadena’s commuters take a bus or train.
Altadena places 402nd of 1,037 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 29,000 to 56,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 57 | Manhattan Beach CA | 33,122 | $204K | 4.5% | 3.8% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 65 | Saratoga CA | 30,418 | $250K | 3.3% | 4.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 107 | Newark CA | 47,895 | $169K | 4.3% | 4.3% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 400 | Windsor CT | 29,879 | $105K | 6.7% | 5.5% | 14% | A− |
| 401 | Lake Villa Township IL | 40,029 | $120K | 5.5% | 6.2% | 6% | A− |
| 402 | Altadena CA | 41,705 | $129K | 7.9% | 6.4% | 5% | A− |
| 403 | Laguna Hills CA | 30,020 | $129K | 7.8% | 6.2% | 6% | A− |
| 404 | Greenfield WI | 37,159 | $70K | 8.6% | 2.5% | 5% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,037 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Altadena, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Next door is work for 17% of Altadena
Jobs & commute next door
The biggest share goes to Pasadena. Darker towns draw more of Altadena’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 Altadena: questions
What is the median household income in Altadena?
$128,720 (±$12,031) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Altadena?
7.9%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Altadena?
28 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 25% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Altadena work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Los Angeles (28%, 20 mi), Pasadena (17%, 2 mi), Burbank (6%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Altadena walkable?
Altadena is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 12.7 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Altadena without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 36% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Altadena, from the people who make the trip.
More of Altadena
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.