Household incomes in Harbison Canyon top those of 91% of U.S. towns
Jobs and income earn Harbison Canyon B+; getting around on foot earns it D. 4.7% of residents live below the poverty line, next to 12.0% for California as a whole. Only 2% work in Harbison Canyon itself; outside it, San Diego draws the most (33%, 16 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Harbison Canyon apart
Harbison Canyon and San Diego trade workers both ways
San Diego is the top workplace for Harbison Canyon residents (33%) and also where the most people who work in Harbison Canyon come from (21% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Harbison Canyon makes and builds things
48% of the jobs based in Harbison Canyon are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Harbison Canyon residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 21%. The jobs ↓
Harbison Canyon is a place people come home to
There are 370 jobs based in Harbison Canyon, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Harbison Canyon has about 2,900 people in it, 34% 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.
Where Harbison Canyon’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Harbison Canyon is better than 75% of U.S. towns, #229 of 847 in California. Household income holds Harbison Canyon’s grade up ($130,302, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (7.6%, 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, Harbison Canyon could be anywhere from B to A+.
The towns that employ Harbison Canyon’s residents
Where Harbison Canyon clocks in
33% of workers
10% 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.
A place that makes things: 48% of Harbison Canyon’s jobs are in goods
370 jobs are based in Harbison Canyon.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Harbison Canyon, 2013 → 2023: 227 → 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 Harbison Canyon’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who leaves Harbison Canyon for work, and who comes in
On a workday 1,815 residents head out to work, 33 work right here, and 337 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,900 people are in Harbison Canyon on a workday afternoon, 34% 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.
Getting to work from Harbison Canyon takes about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Harbison Canyon workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,664 commuters (the 16% 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.
Half of Harbison Canyon commutes less than 18 miles
About 15% 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.
Harbison Canyon is a driving town
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Harbison Canyon is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns, #821 of 847 in California. Both inputs place Harbison Canyon 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 1,989 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 2.0% of Harbison Canyon households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Harbison Canyon’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 3,000 to 5,800, Harbison Canyon ranks 1,036th of 4,039 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Del Mar CA | 3,858 | $199K | 2.7% | 1.8% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 73 | Las Flores CA | 5,513 | $212K | 4.8% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 81 | Broadmoor CA | 4,586 | $167K | 2.5% | 2.8% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,034 | Grattan Township MI | 3,896 | $111K | 1.9% | 6.3% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,035 | Paradise Township PA | 4,096 | $79K | 4.1% | 3.8% | 3% | B+ |
| 1,036 | Harbison Canyon CA | 4,328 | $130K | 4.7% | 7.6% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,037 | Trafford PA | 3,211 | $66K | 9.2% | 1.0% | 3% | B+ |
| 1,038 | Lisbon CT | 4,260 | $93K | 6.6% | 3.2% | 6% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,039 | 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 Harbison Canyon, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Work in the towns next to Harbison Canyon
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Harbison Canyon workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbison Canyon | – | B+ | D | 31 min | $130,302 |
| Crest | under 2% | B | C | 29 min | $110,000 |
| Alpine | 2% | B+ | B− | 30 min | $108,660 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Alpine. Darker towns draw more of Harbison Canyon’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 Harbison Canyon: questions
What is the median household income in Harbison Canyon?
$130,302 (±$21,610) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Harbison Canyon?
4.7%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Harbison Canyon?
31 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Harbison Canyon work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Diego (33%, 16 mi), El Cajon (10%, 7 mi), La Mesa (4%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Harbison Canyon walkable?
Harbison Canyon is more walkable than 14% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Harbison Canyon without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Harbison Canyon, from the people who make the trip.
More of Harbison Canyon
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.