Photo: KenShirriff · CC BY-SA 4.0Unemployment in North Fair Oaks (8.4%) is higher than in 90% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute lasts 22 minutes, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. For jobs and income North Fair Oaks is better than 57% of U.S. towns (B); for walkability it is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (A). Measured by household income, North Fair Oaks is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in North Fair Oaks: the gist
Commutes from North Fair Oaks are quick
The average trip to work takes 22 minutes, against 29 across California. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical California worker. Time on the road ↓
Most jobs in North Fair Oaks pay over $40,000 a year
72% of the jobs based in North Fair Oaks pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), 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 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
The four measures behind North Fair Oaks’ grade
Job access by car holds North Fair Oaks’ grade up (ahead of 93% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, North Fair Oaks could be anywhere from C+ to B+.
Getting to work from North Fair Oaks takes about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of North Fair Oaks workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,058 commuters (the 19% 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.
72% of the jobs in North Fair Oaks pay over $3,333 a month
3,874 jobs are based in North Fair Oaks.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in North Fair Oaks, 2014 → 2024: 3,505 → 3,874. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs North Fair Oaks’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who commutes out of North Fair Oaks, and who commutes in
On a workday 5,091 residents head out to work, 226 work right here, and 3,648 people come in from elsewhere.
About 12,000 people are in North Fair Oaks on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.73 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 2024, primary jobs.
12% of working residents work in Redwood City
Where North Fair Oaks clocks in
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.
How far North Fair Oaks’ workers travel
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
North Fair Oaks is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,215 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 24% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 7% 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). 5.4% of North Fair Oaks households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of North Fair Oaks’ commuters take a bus or train.
1,387th of 2,526: where North Fair Oaks ranks among U.S. towns of 9,000 to 18,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | Piedmont CA | 10,642 | $250K | 4.3% | 1.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 82 | Sierra Madre CA | 10,620 | $144K | 4.6% | 2.6% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 130 | Alamo CA | 14,488 | $250K | 2.1% | 3.6% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,385 | Dallas Township PA | 9,554 | $101K | 10.0% | 5.3% | 10% | B |
| 1,386 | Rockton Township IL | 16,144 | $77K | 9.4% | 4.7% | 10% | B |
| 1,387 | North Fair Oaks CA | 13,100 | $105K | 13.0% | 8.4% | 4% | B |
| 1,388 | Lyons IL | 10,433 | $71K | 14.0% | 4.6% | 3% | B |
| 1,389 | Wood River IL | 10,224 | $63K | 13.9% | 2.9% | 8% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,526 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 North Fair Oaks, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Work next door: 12% of North Fair Oaks’ workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | North Fair Oaks workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Fair Oaks | – | B | A | 22 min | $104,884 |
| Redwood City | 12% | A | A | 24 min | $157,814 |
| Atherton | under 4% | A+ | A | 23 min | $250,000+ |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Redwood City. Darker towns draw more of North Fair Oaks’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 2024, 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 North Fair Oaks: questions
What is the median household income in North Fair Oaks?
$104,884 (±$15,769) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in North Fair Oaks?
13.0%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from North Fair Oaks?
22 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in North Fair Oaks work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Redwood City (12%, 3 mi), Palo Alto (8%, 6 mi), San Francisco (7%, 24 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is North Fair Oaks walkable?
North Fair Oaks is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.6 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around North Fair Oaks without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 7% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from North Fair Oaks, from the people who make the trip.
More of North Fair Oaks
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.