Photo: Chad K · CC BY 2.0Unemployment in Redding (5.3%) is higher than in 65% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 17.5 in Los Angeles. For jobs and income Redding is better than 36% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 85% of U.S. towns (A). 9% of workers work from home, where California as a whole has 17%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The short version on getting to work from Redding
Commutes from Redding are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 29 across California. That’s about 92 hours a year less on the road than the typical California worker, and quicker than any town next door (20 to 26 minutes). Time on the road ↓
Most jobs in Redding go to people who live here
Of the 42,499 jobs based in Redding, 47% are held by Redding residents. In most towns, people from elsewhere hold most of the local jobs. 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.
Inside Redding’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car holds Redding’s grade up (ahead of 54% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (14.1%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Redding could be anywhere from C to C+.
Commuting from Redding: about 17 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Redding workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 36,291 commuters (the 9% 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 daily flow of workers through Redding
On a workday 12,538 residents head out to work, 20,011 work right here, and 22,488 people come in from elsewhere.
About 104,000 people are in Redding on a workday afternoon, 11% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.31 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.
Where Redding goes to work
Where Redding clocks in
3% of workers
2% 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.
What work there is in Redding: 42,499 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Redding, 2013 → 2023: 39,345 → 42,499. 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 Redding’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far it is to work from Redding
About 18% 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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Redding
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 4.1% 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 40,055 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 73% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 28% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 79% 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). 7.7% of Redding households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Redding’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Redding is 385th of 473 U.S. towns of 66,000 to 127,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| 3 | Bethesda MD | 69,397 | $192K | 4.3% | 3.1% | 16% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | Dublin CA | 71,602 | $214K | 4.5% | 3.8% | 6% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 28 | Berkeley CA | 121,911 | $108K | 17.3% | 5.6% | 21% | A |
| 29 | Mountain View CA | 85,438 | $190K | 6.0% | 3.7% | 16% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 383 | Wichita Falls TX | 101,951 | $60K | 17.7% | 3.8% | 62% | C+ |
| 384 | Bloom Township IL | 83,631 | $74K | 17.8% | 11.0% | 11% | C+ |
| 385 | Redding CA | 94,092 | $70K | 14.1% | 5.3% | 61% | C+ |
| 386 | San Marcos TX | 77,830 | $51K | 26.9% | 5.2% | 26% | C+ |
| 387 | Joliet Township IL | 86,200 | $64K | 18.4% | 7.2% | 15% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 473 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 51% | 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 Redding, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Work in the towns next to Redding
The biggest share goes to Shasta Lake (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Redding workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redding | – | C+ | A | 17 min | $70,466 |
| Happy Valley | under 1% | C | D | 23 min | $92,222 |
| Shasta | under 1% | B− | B− | 26 min | $111,250 |
| Centerville | under 1% | A− | D | 21 min | $122,500 |
| Keswick | under 1% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| Shasta Lake | 2% | C | A− | 20 min | $67,401 |
Same-state neighbors only. Keswick: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Redding’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 Redding: questions
What is the median household income in Redding?
$70,466 (±$2,295) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Redding?
14.1%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Redding?
17 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Redding work?
61% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Anderson (3%, 9 mi), Chico (2%, 63 mi), Red Bluff (2%, 28 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Redding walkable?
Redding is more walkable than 85% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.2 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Redding without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 28% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Redding, from the people who make the trip.
More of Redding
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.