Photo: Binksternet · Public domainUnemployment in King City (5.4%) is higher than in 67% of U.S. towns
4% of workers work from home (California 17%). For jobs and income King City is better than 17% of U.S. towns (C−); for walkability it is more walkable than 83% of U.S. towns (A−). About one in four stay in King City for work; outside it, Salinas is the main destination (10%, 43 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where King City stands out on work
King City’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside King City is Salinas, 43 miles away as the crow flies. 10% of working residents (532) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
King City makes and builds things
44% of the jobs based in King City are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs King City residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 36%. The jobs ↓
Few King City workers work from home
Only 4% of workers work from home, against 17% across California. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
37% 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.
King City’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
Household income holds King City’s grade up ($66,761, U.S. $80,734); the poverty rate pulls it down (23.0%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, King City could be anywhere from D to C+.
The commute from King City, by distance
About 37% 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.
A place that makes things: 44% of King City’s jobs are in goods
3,669 jobs are based in King City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in King City, 2013 → 2023: 3,943 → 3,669. 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 King City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from King City: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of King City workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,451 commuters (the 4% 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.
The daily flow of workers through King City
On a workday 3,890 residents head out to work, 1,182 work right here, and 2,487 people come in from elsewhere.
About 13,000 people are in King City on a workday afternoon, 10% fewer than live here.
0.72 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.
The towns that employ King City’s residents
Where King City clocks in
10% of workers
6% of workers
6% 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.
King City is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
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 4,633 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 95% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 14% 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). 4.4% of King City households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of King City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Where King City sits among U.S. towns of 10,000 to 19,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Piedmont CA | 10,642 | $250K | 4.3% | 1.5% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 71 | Sierra Madre CA | 10,620 | $144K | 4.6% | 2.6% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 117 | Alamo CA | 14,488 | $250K | 2.1% | 3.6% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,018 | Fulton NY | 11,188 | $52K | 23.5% | 6.5% | 18% | C− |
| 2,019 | Corinth MS | 14,345 | $44K | 18.7% | 4.7% | 35% | C− |
| 2,020 | King City CA | 14,002 | $67K | 23.0% | 5.4% | 23% | C− |
| 2,021 | Berwick PA | 10,297 | $50K | 16.5% | 6.6% | 20% | C− |
| 2,022 | Shiloh OH | 10,526 | $46K | 24.5% | 11.4% | 2% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,227 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 King City, the top three, the last and three more from California.
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 King City: questions
What is the median household income in King City?
$66,761 (±$11,996) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in King City?
23.0%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from King City?
29 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in King City work?
23% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Salinas (10%, 43 mi), San Jose (6%, 84 mi), Soledad (6%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is King City walkable?
King City is more walkable than 83% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 12.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around King City without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 14% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from King City, from the people who make the trip.
More of King 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.