Photo: Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 4.0Almost no one in Nevada City’s labor force is looking for work
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 17.5 in Los Angeles. For jobs and income Nevada City is better than 67% of U.S. towns (B+); for walkability it is more walkable than 95% of U.S. towns (A). Home is the office for 32% of workers; California has 17%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Nevada City, in a few figures
Nevada City has far more jobs than workers
Nevada City has 3,332 jobs, 3.2 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 5,500 people are in town, 73% more than the 3,200 who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Nevada City works from home
32% of Nevada City workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Nevada City and Grass Valley trade workers both ways
Grass Valley is the top workplace for Nevada City residents (20%) and also where the most people who work in Nevada City come from (14% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Commutes from Nevada City are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 29 across California. That’s about 61 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
33% 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 Nevada City earns its Jobs & income grade
Unemployment holds Nevada City’s grade up (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 39% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Nevada City could be anywhere from C+ to A.
Who works in Nevada City, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 870 residents head out to work, 160 work right here, and 3,172 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,500 people are in Nevada City on a workday afternoon, 73% more than live here.
3.2 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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 from Nevada City: about 21 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Nevada City workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 849 commuters (the 31% 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.
Where Nevada City’s workers come from
Where Nevada City clocks in
20% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Nevada City
About 33% 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.
65% of the jobs in Nevada City pay over $3,333 a month
3,332 jobs are based in Nevada City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Nevada City, 2013 → 2023: 2,838 → 3,332. 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 Nevada City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Nevada 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: 6.3% 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 1,239 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 97% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 97% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 57% 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). 2.6% of Nevada City households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Nevada City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 2,200 to 4,300, Nevada City ranks 1,407th of 4,698 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 92 | Ross CA | 2,304 | $250K | 4.8% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,405 | Winfield Township PA | 3,287 | $91K | 4.1% | 5.7% | 5% | B+ |
| 1,406 | Santa Venetia CA | 3,725 | $127K | 7.8% | 7.5% | 3% | B+ |
| 1,407 | Nevada City CA | 3,174 | $76K | 8.9% | 0.0% | 16% | B+ |
| 1,408 | Carthage IL | 2,393 | $77K | 6.7% | 0.1% | 31% | B+ |
| 1,409 | Maurice LA | 3,215 | $91K | 11.8% | 3.4% | 4% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,698 | 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 Nevada 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 Nevada City: questions
What is the median household income in Nevada City?
$75,792 (±$15,323) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Nevada City?
8.9%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Nevada City?
21 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 32% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Nevada City work?
16% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Grass Valley (20%, 3 mi), Sacramento (4%, 53 mi), San Francisco (4%, 127 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Nevada City walkable?
Nevada City is more walkable than 95% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 14.7 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Nevada City without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 97% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Nevada City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Nevada 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.