Most of Cathedral City commutes out: there are 0.5 jobs for every working resident
9,301 jobs are based in Cathedral City, and 20,577 of its residents work somewhere. The two grades for Cathedral City are C+ for jobs and income and A− for walkability. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 1.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 4.3 in Riverside.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Cathedral City apart on work
A lot of Cathedral City works one town over
33% of working residents work in a town that borders Cathedral City: Palm Springs (19%), Rancho Mirage (10%) and Thousand Palms (2%). Next door ↓
Commutes from Cathedral City are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 29 across California. That’s about 69 hours a year less on the road than the typical California worker. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
30% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
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 the Jobs & income grade adds up in Cathedral City
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Cathedral City is better than 40% of U.S. towns, #580 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds Cathedral City’s grade up (ahead of 64% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.0%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Cathedral City could be anywhere from C to B−.
The trip to work from Cathedral City: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Cathedral City workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 22,149 commuters (the 10% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Cathedral City
About 30% 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.
Who works in Cathedral City, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 18,518 residents head out to work, 2,059 work right here, and 7,242 people come in from elsewhere.
About 41,000 people are in Cathedral City 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 2023, primary jobs.
19% of working residents work in Palm Springs
Where Cathedral City clocks in
19% of workers
10% of workers
10% 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 Cathedral City
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Cathedral City, 2013 → 2023: 7,776 → 9,301. 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 Cathedral City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Cathedral City is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Cathedral City is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns, #388 of 847 in California. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.2% 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 24,545 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 78% 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 1.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 66% 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). 5.0% of Cathedral City households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Cathedral City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 37,000 to 71,000, Cathedral City ranks 657th of 837 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Liberty Township OH | 40,625 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 51 | Cupertino CA | 58,333 | $235K | 4.1% | 4.0% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 63 | South San Francisco CA | 64,941 | $137K | 6.7% | 2.8% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 78 | Newark CA | 47,895 | $169K | 4.3% | 4.3% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 655 | Concord Township IN | 56,145 | $55K | 16.5% | 3.9% | 25% | C+ |
| 656 | Bell Gardens CA | 37,367 | $62K | 20.0% | 5.9% | 5% | C+ |
| 657 | Cathedral City CA | 52,375 | $74K | 13.1% | 6.0% | 10% | C+ |
| 658 | Urbana IL | 39,719 | $45K | 28.0% | 4.7% | 20% | C+ |
| 659 | Cunningham Township IL | 39,719 | $45K | 28.0% | 4.7% | 20% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 837 | 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 Cathedral City, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Next door is work for 33% of Cathedral City
The biggest share goes to Palm Springs (19%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Cathedral City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cathedral City | – | C+ | A− | 20 min | $73,572 |
| Rancho Mirage | 10% | B− | B+ | 25 min | $107,364 |
| Palm Springs | 19% | C+ | A | 22 min | $73,119 |
| Garnet | under 2% | B− | B | 29 min | $72,694 |
| Thousand Palms | 2% | B− | B | 22 min | $77,000 |
| Desert Hot Springs | 2% | C− | A | 29 min | $52,761 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Cathedral City’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 Cathedral City: questions
What is the median household income in Cathedral City?
$73,572 (±$3,753) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Cathedral City?
13.1%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Cathedral City?
20 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Cathedral City work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Palm Springs (19%, 5 mi), Palm Desert (10%, 9 mi), Rancho Mirage (10%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Cathedral City walkable?
Cathedral City is more walkable than 82% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 11.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Cathedral City without a car?
1% 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 Cathedral City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Cathedral City
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.