South Gate has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.6 for each
South Gate grades B− for jobs and income and A for walkability. Employers in South Gate report 18,861 jobs, and 34,244 of its residents work somewhere. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 7.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 17.5 in Los Angeles.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in South Gate
Short distances, slow trips
Half of South Gate’s working residents have a job less than 9 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 33 minutes, longer than the California average of 29. Time on the road ↓
South Gate and Los Angeles trade workers both ways
Los Angeles is the top workplace for South Gate residents (26%) and also where the most people who work in South Gate come from (18% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
South Gate draws workers from far and wide
The 18,861 jobs in South Gate are filled from a wide area. South Gate’s own residents hold 9% and the ten next-biggest home towns 36%; the other 55% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
Where South Gate’s Jobs & income grade comes from
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, South Gate is better than 50% of U.S. towns, #504 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds South Gate’s grade up (among the top U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (7.4%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, South Gate could be anywhere from C+ to B.
From South Gate, about 33 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of South Gate workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 39,881 commuters (the 7% 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.
26% of working residents work in Los Angeles
Where South Gate clocks in
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.
South Gate quiets down on a workday
On a workday 32,584 residents head out to work, 1,660 work right here, and 17,201 people come in from elsewhere.
About 75,000 people are in South Gate on a workday afternoon, 17% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
The kinds of work in South Gate
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in South Gate, 2013 → 2023: 21,899 → 18,861. 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 South Gate’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from South Gate
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.
South Gate 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, South Gate is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns, #143 of 847 in California. Both inputs place South Gate 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 42,892 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 62% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 7.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 90% 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 South Gate households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of South Gate’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 63,000 to 122,000, South Gate ranks 339th of 502 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | South San Francisco CA | 64,941 | $137K | 6.7% | 2.8% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 29 | Dublin CA | 71,602 | $214K | 4.5% | 3.8% | 6% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 33 | Berkeley CA | 121,911 | $108K | 17.3% | 5.6% | 21% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 337 | Missoula MT | 78,903 | $70K | 11.8% | 3.8% | 72% | B− |
| 338 | Oshkosh WI | 67,460 | $62K | 17.5% | 2.8% | 42% | B− |
| 339 | South Gate CA | 90,071 | $75K | 12.7% | 7.4% | 5% | B− |
| 340 | Gresham OR | 111,513 | $78K | 13.0% | 5.6% | 16% | B− |
| 341 | Eau Claire WI | 72,465 | $67K | 14.3% | 3.4% | 50% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 502 | 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 South Gate, the top three, the last and three more from California.
The towns around South Gate
The biggest share goes to Downey (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | South Gate workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Gate | – | B− | A | 33 min | $74,571 |
| Lynwood | under 2% | C+ | A | 30 min | $74,844 |
| Paramount | under 2% | B | A | 28 min | $75,250 |
| Downey | 3% | B+ | A | 31 min | $90,699 |
| Walnut Park | under 2% | B− | A | 33 min | $80,331 |
| Cudahy | under 2% | C | A | 31 min | $56,615 |
| Florence-Graham | under 2% | C | A+ | 33 min | $65,132 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of South Gate’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 South Gate: questions
What is the median household income in South Gate?
$74,571 (±$3,440) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in South Gate?
12.7%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from South Gate?
33 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in South Gate work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Los Angeles (26%, 14 mi), Long Beach (4%, 11 mi), Downey (3%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is South Gate walkable?
South Gate is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 13.7 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around South Gate without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 62% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from South Gate, from the people who make the trip.
More of South Gate
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.