Photo: Public domain · Public domainFew U.S. towns have household incomes as high as Montara’s
Measured by household income, Montara is among the highest-earning towns in the country. The poverty rate is 3.4%; California has 12.0%. Montara grades A− for jobs and income and C− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Montara, in a few figures
Montara is a place people come home to
There are 142 jobs based in Montara, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Montara has about 2,100 people in it, 29% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Home offices are common in Montara
29% of Montara workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Three in four Montara workers earn over $40,000 a year
76% of Montara’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. 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; with 991 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Montara
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Montara is better than 78% of U.S. towns, #195 of 847 in California. Household income holds Montara’s grade up ($233,826, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (9.5%, 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, Montara could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
The daily commute in and out of Montara
On a workday 983 residents head out to work, 8 work right here, and 134 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,100 people are in Montara on a workday afternoon, 29% fewer than live here.
0.14 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.
Time on the road from Montara: about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Montara workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,041 commuters (the 29% 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 142 jobs based in Montara
142 jobs are based in Montara.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Montara, 2013 → 2023: 257 → 142. 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 Montara’s own residents hold wherever they work.
18% of working residents work in San Francisco
Where Montara clocks in
7% of workers
5% 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.
Miles to work from Montara
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.
Few in Montara walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Montara is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns, #802 of 847 in California. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any 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 1,461 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). 0.0% of Montara households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Montara’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 4,882 U.S. towns of 2,000 to 3,900, Montara comes 933rd on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Del Mar CA | 3,858 | $199K | 2.7% | 1.8% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Harmony Grove CA | 2,585 | $227K | 4.6% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 95 | Ross CA | 2,304 | $250K | 4.8% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 931 | Westphalia Township MI | 2,451 | $92K | 7.0% | 2.1% | 4% | A− |
| 932 | Green Township NJ | 3,715 | $142K | 4.3% | 5.3% | 4% | A− |
| 933 | Montara CA | 2,917 | $234K | 3.4% | 9.5% | 1% | A− |
| 934 | Wernersville PA | 2,831 | $76K | 8.2% | 2.0% | 4% | A− |
| 935 | Frankenlust Township MI | 3,684 | $93K | 5.8% | 3.4% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,882 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 12% | 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 Montara, the top three, the last and three more from California.
The towns around Montara
The biggest share goes to Moss Beach (4%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Montara workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montara | – | A− | C− | 31 min | $233,826 |
| Moss Beach | 4% | A | B+ | 32 min | $99,680 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Montara’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 Montara: questions
What is the median household income in Montara?
$233,826 (±$102,824) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Montara?
3.4%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Montara?
31 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Montara work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Francisco (18%, 16 mi), Half Moon Bay (7%, 6 mi), South San Francisco (5%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Montara walkable?
Montara is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 7.1 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Montara without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Montara, from the people who make the trip.
More of Montara
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.