Photo: Dicklyon · CC BY-SA 4.0Pacifica’s household incomes are higher than in 96% of U.S. towns
Jobs & income A: better than 91% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #58 of 847 in California.
Walkability A−: more walkable than 81% of U.S. towns · #399 of 847 in California.
Working residents average 27 minutes each way (California 29, U.S. 26). About one in ten work in Pacifica; the top destination outside it is San Francisco (33%, 12 miles).
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.0 transit trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 37.5 in San Francisco (EPA, 2020 schedules).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Pacifica
Pacifica and San Francisco trade workers both ways
San Francisco is the top workplace for Pacifica residents (33%) and also where the most people who work in Pacifica come from (14% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Pacifica
77% of Pacifica residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 56% of the jobs based in Pacifica pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 92% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Pacifica is a place people come home to
There are 4,657 jobs based in Pacifica, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Pacifica has about 24,000 people in it, 34% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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.
What’s behind Pacifica’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Pacifica is better than 91% of U.S. towns, #58 of 847 in California. Household income is its strongest input ($160,523, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Pacifica could be anywhere from A− to A+.
33% of working residents work in San Francisco
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Pacifica clocks in
6% of workers
4% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
What the 4,657 jobs in Pacifica are
4,657 jobs are based in Pacifica. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Pacifica’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Pacifica, 2013 → 2023: 3,951 → 4,657. 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.
Pacifica quiets down on a workday
On a workday 15,964 residents head out to work, 1,412 work right here, and 3,245 people come in from elsewhere.
About 24,000 people are in Pacifica on a workday afternoon, 34% fewer than live here.
0.27 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.
About 27 minutes each way, about the CA average
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Pacifica workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 15,208 commuters (the 24% who work from home are left out). Across California: 79% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Half of Pacifica commutes less than 12 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Pacifica is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Pacifica is more walkable than 81% of U.S. towns, #399 of 847 in California. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 6.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 7.1% across California, on an EPA index of 7.8.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 19,902 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 0.0 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). 2.7% of Pacifica households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of Pacifica’s commuters take a bus or train.
Pacifica is 180th of 1,162 U.S. towns of 26,000 to 50,000 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Pacifica, the top three, the last and three more from California.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 3 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 69 | Manhattan Beach CA | 33,122 | $204K | 4.5% | 3.8% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 77 | Saratoga CA | 30,418 | $250K | 3.3% | 4.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 122 | Newark CA | 47,895 | $169K | 4.3% | 4.3% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 178 | Bristol Township IL | 36,464 | $109K | 3.0% | 3.5% | 4% | A |
| 179 | Mililani Town HI | 27,668 | $127K | 3.2% | 3.7% | 2% | A |
| 180 | Pacifica CA | 36,890 | $161K | 5.8% | 3.9% | 8% | A |
| 181 | Chaska MN | 30,513 | $111K | 5.8% | 3.2% | 13% | A |
| 182 | Bethlehem NY | 35,684 | $124K | 5.0% | 3.0% | 13% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,162 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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.
Pacifica and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to South San Francisco (6%). Darker towns draw more of Pacifica’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Pacifica workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pacifica | – | A | A− | 27 min | $160,523 |
| Daly City | 3% | A− | A+ | 29 min | $123,547 |
| San Bruno | under 2% | A | A | 24 min | $141,272 |
| South San Francisco | 6% | A | A | 26 min | $136,578 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 Pacifica: questions
What is the median household income in Pacifica?
$160,523 (±$13,153) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Pacifica?
5.8%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Pacifica?
27 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 24% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Pacifica work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Francisco (33%, 12 mi), South San Francisco (6%, 7 mi), San Mateo (4%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Pacifica walkable?
Pacifica is more walkable than 81% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 7.8 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Pacifica without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Pacifica, from the people who make the trip.
More of Pacifica
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.