Photo: Pi.1415926535 · CC BY-SA 3.0Households in Belmont earn more than in almost any other U.S. town
Jobs and income earn Belmont A−; getting around on foot earns it A. Measured by household income, Belmont is among the highest-earning towns in the country. 6.9% of residents live below the poverty line; California has 12.0%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Belmont apart on work
A lot of Belmont works from home
34% of Belmont workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
83% of Belmont’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data, and so do 73% of the jobs based in Belmont. 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.
What’s behind Belmont’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Belmont is better than 78% of U.S. towns, #194 of 847 in California. Household income holds Belmont’s grade up ($205,297, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (7.2%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Belmont could be anywhere from B+ to A.
The daily trip from Belmont: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Belmont workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9,095 commuters (the 34% 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.
73% of the jobs in Belmont pay over $3,333 a month
6,198 jobs are based in Belmont.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Belmont, 2013 → 2023: 5,412 → 6,198. 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 Belmont’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many people are in Belmont by day
On a workday 11,565 residents head out to work, 495 work right here, and 5,703 people come in from elsewhere.
About 23,000 people are in Belmont on a workday afternoon, 20% fewer than live here.
0.51 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.
12% of working residents work in San Francisco
Where Belmont clocks in
8% 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.
How far Belmont’s workers travel
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.
Belmont is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Belmont is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns, #152 of 847 in California. Both inputs place Belmont 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 13,723 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 24% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 56% 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). 5.1% of Belmont households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 7% of Belmont’s commuters take a bus or train.
541st of 1,467: where Belmont ranks among U.S. towns of 20,000 to 39,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 88 | Manhattan Beach CA | 33,122 | $204K | 4.5% | 3.8% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 104 | Saratoga CA | 30,418 | $250K | 3.3% | 4.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 121 | Lafayette CA | 25,313 | $228K | 2.9% | 4.3% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 539 | Hastings MN | 22,563 | $94K | 5.4% | 4.9% | 23% | A− |
| 540 | Arnold MO | 20,994 | $78K | 8.2% | 2.8% | 7% | A− |
| 541 | Belmont CA | 28,752 | $205K | 6.9% | 7.2% | 4% | A− |
| 542 | Happy Valley OR | 28,916 | $122K | 7.7% | 4.8% | 4% | A− |
| 543 | Greenfield IN | 26,544 | $76K | 5.3% | 3.3% | 20% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,467 | Barstow CA | 24,804 | $53K | 23.1% | 11.9% | 17% | 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 Belmont, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Belmont and its neighbors: 18% work next door
The biggest share goes to San Mateo (8%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Belmont workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belmont | – | A− | A | 29 min | $205,297 |
| San Carlos | 3% | A | A | 25 min | $237,470 |
| San Mateo | 8% | A− | A+ | 26 min | $153,504 |
| Redwood City | 7% | A | A | 24 min | $157,814 |
| Foster City | under 4% | A | A | 29 min | $199,143 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Belmont’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 Belmont: questions
What is the median household income in Belmont?
$205,297 (±$18,232) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Belmont?
6.9%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Belmont?
29 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 34% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Belmont work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Francisco (12%, 19 mi), San Mateo (8%, 3 mi), Redwood City (7%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Belmont walkable?
Belmont is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.1 out of 20, and 11% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Belmont without a car?
7% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Belmont, from the people who make the trip.
More of Belmont
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.