Murrieta’s household incomes are higher than in 86% of U.S. towns
Murrieta grades B+ for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. The poverty rate is 5.4%, next to 12.0% for California as a whole. About one in seven work in Murrieta itself; outside it, Temecula draws the most (13%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Murrieta and work: the main findings
Murrieta workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 37 minutes each way, against 29 across California. Over a year that’s about 284 hours of commuting, 61 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Murrieta has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Murrieta went from 20,423 in 2013 to 29,946 in 2023, +47%. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Murrieta’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Murrieta is better than 70% of U.S. towns, #294 of 847 in California. Household income holds Murrieta’s grade up ($114,081, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (6.8%, 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, Murrieta could be anywhere from B to A−.
A commute of about 37 minutes in Murrieta
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Murrieta workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 41,714 commuters (the 17% 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 29,946 jobs based in Murrieta
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Murrieta, 2013 → 2023: 20,423 → 29,946. 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 Murrieta’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who commutes out of Murrieta, and who commutes in
On a workday 36,440 residents head out to work, 5,624 work right here, and 24,322 people come in from elsewhere.
About 102,000 people are in Murrieta on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.71 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.
Commuting out of Murrieta: the destinations
Where Murrieta clocks in
13% of workers
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.
The distance from Murrieta to work
About 24% 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.
In Murrieta, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Murrieta is more walkable than 69% of U.S. towns, #552 of 847 in California. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.8% 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 50,151 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 56% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 6% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 61% 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). 2.7% of Murrieta households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Murrieta’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
For jobs and income, Murrieta is 137th of 365 U.S. towns of 80,000 to 154,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Jordan UT | 87,614 | $134K | 3.7% | 2.4% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Carmel IN | 105,634 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 23% | A+ |
| 3 | Clay Township IN | 104,932 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 23% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | Berkeley CA | 121,911 | $108K | 17.3% | 5.6% | 21% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Mountain View CA | 85,438 | $190K | 6.0% | 3.7% | 16% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Livermore CA | 83,457 | $161K | 4.9% | 3.6% | 23% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 135 | Warwick RI | 84,187 | $89K | 7.6% | 5.1% | 23% | B+ |
| 136 | Broken Arrow OK | 124,991 | $87K | 8.8% | 4.2% | 17% | B+ |
| 137 | Murrieta CA | 114,124 | $114K | 5.4% | 6.8% | 13% | B+ |
| 138 | Chino CA | 96,957 | $105K | 8.0% | 6.5% | 11% | B+ |
| 139 | Boca Raton FL | 101,582 | $106K | 10.0% | 5.5% | 32% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 365 | Lawton OK | 90,503 | $54K | 21.1% | 8.1% | 55% | 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 Murrieta, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Murrieta and its neighbors: 17% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Murrieta workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murrieta | – | B+ | B+ | 37 min | $114,081 |
| Wildomar | 2% | B− | B | 38 min | $103,506 |
| French Valley | under 2% | B+ | B | 41 min | $148,520 |
| Temecula | 13% | B+ | B+ | 36 min | $121,063 |
| Menifee | 2% | B | B | 42 min | $93,454 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Temecula. Darker towns draw more of Murrieta’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 Murrieta: questions
What is the median household income in Murrieta?
$114,081 (±$5,408) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Murrieta?
5.4%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Murrieta?
37 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 17% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Murrieta work?
13% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Temecula (13%, 6 mi), San Diego (8%, 52 mi), Los Angeles (4%, 76 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Murrieta walkable?
Murrieta is more walkable than 69% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 10.6 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Murrieta without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 6% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Murrieta, from the people who make the trip.
More of Murrieta
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.