Photo: Robert Hsiao · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Oakland are higher than in 78% of U.S. towns
13.4% of residents live below the poverty line, against 12.0% across California. The two grades for Oakland are B for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Home is the office for 26% of workers; California has 17%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Oakland apart
Oakland trades workers with the towns around it
Oakland has about as many jobs (198,047) as working residents (177,617), but they are mostly different people: 132,051 residents leave for work each day while 152,481 people come in. Only 23% of the jobs in Oakland are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Oakland works from home
27% of Oakland workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Most jobs in Oakland pay over $40,000 a year
75% of the jobs based in Oakland 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 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
The figures behind Oakland’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Oakland is better than 62% of U.S. towns, #392 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds Oakland’s grade up (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Oakland stays B.
A workday in Oakland: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 132,051 residents head out to work, 45,566 work right here, and 152,481 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.12 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Oakland’s commute takes about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Oakland workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 168,686 commuters (the 27% 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.
75% of the jobs in Oakland pay over $3,333 a month
198,047 jobs are based in Oakland.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Oakland, 2013 → 2023: 175,380 → 198,047. 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 Oakland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
22% of working residents work in San Francisco
Where Oakland clocks in
6% of workers
3% 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 Oakland
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.
Oakland is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Oakland is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #10 of 847 in California. Both inputs place Oakland near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 229,529 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, 73% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 23.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 98% 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). 16.2% of Oakland households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 17% of Oakland’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
Among U.S. towns of 309,000 to 595,000, Oakland ranks 11th of 39 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Islip NY | 340,867 | $130K | 6.4% | 4.5% | 28% | A |
| 2 | Brookhaven NY | 496,410 | $120K | 7.0% | 5.2% | 32% | A− |
| 3 | Virginia Beach VA | 453,737 | $93K | 8.6% | 4.0% | 47% | A− |
| 4 | Irvine CA | 318,764 | $137K | 10.8% | 5.9% | 29% | B+ |
| 5 | Santa Ana CA | 315,586 | $94K | 10.8% | 4.8% | 18% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Anaheim CA | 341,008 | $95K | 12.4% | 5.8% | 17% | B |
| 9 | Urban Honolulu HI | 345,482 | $87K | 11.9% | 4.8% | 76% | B |
| 10 | Henderson NV | 353,289 | $90K | 9.0% | 6.8% | 23% | B |
| 11 | Oakland CA | 440,838 | $102K | 13.4% | 6.4% | 26% | B |
| 12 | Aurora CO | 410,053 | $88K | 11.9% | 5.9% | 23% | B |
| 13 | Riverside CA | 323,057 | $91K | 12.2% | 6.3% | 23% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Cleveland OH | 363,608 | $41K | 30.6% | 10.8% | 42% | C− |
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 Oakland, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Next door is work for 16% of Oakland
The biggest share goes to Berkeley (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Oakland workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland | – | B | A+ | 30 min | $101,600 |
| Berkeley | 6% | A | A+ | 28 min | $108,092 |
| San Leandro | 3% | B+ | A+ | 31 min | $101,420 |
| Alameda | 3% | A− | A+ | 32 min | $137,697 |
| Emeryville | 1% | B | A+ | 29 min | $117,092 |
| Castro Valley | under 2% | A | A | 33 min | $142,779 |
| Brisbane | under 2% | A− | A | 34 min | $156,169 |
| South San Francisco | under 2% | A | A | 26 min | $136,578 |
| Hayward | 3% | B+ | A | 32 min | $113,318 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Oakland’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 Oakland: questions
What is the median household income in Oakland?
$101,600 (±$2,146) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Oakland?
13.4%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Oakland?
30 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Oakland work?
26% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Francisco (22%, 11 mi), Berkeley (6%, 8 mi), San Leandro (3%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Oakland walkable?
Oakland is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.6 out of 20, and 23% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Oakland without a car?
17% of commuters take transit and 16% of households have no car. 73% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Oakland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Oakland
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.