Elliston · Photo: MARELBU · CC BY 3.0Jobs and the daily commute in Sunol
A typical one-way commute lasts 35 minutes, next to 29 for California and 26 for the U.S. 26% of workers work from home; California has 17%. Hardly any stay in Sunol for work; outside it, Pleasanton is the main destination (15%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Sunol at work: what stands out
Sunol and Pleasanton trade workers both ways
Pleasanton is the top workplace for Sunol residents (15%) and also where the most people who work in Sunol come from (11% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A lot of Sunol works from home
26% of Sunol workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
Sunol makes and builds things
35% of the jobs based in Sunol are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Sunol residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 17%. 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; with 435 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where people from Sunol work
Where Sunol clocks in
15% of workers
9% 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.
From Sunol, about 35 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sunol workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 297 commuters (the 26% 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.
35% of the jobs in Sunol make or build things
418 jobs are based in Sunol.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sunol, 2013 → 2023: 526 → 418. 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 Sunol’s own residents hold wherever they work.
In and out of Sunol on a workday
On a workday 434 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 417 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 (0.96 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.
How many miles Sunol commutes
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.
Next door is work for 21% of Sunol
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sunol workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunol | – | — | — | 35 min | $215,000 |
| Fremont | 6% | A | A+ | 30 min | $181,506 |
| Pleasanton | 15% | A | A+ | 34 min | $190,124 |
| Hayward | under 3% | B+ | A | 32 min | $113,318 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Pleasanton. Darker towns draw more of Sunol’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 Sunol: questions
What is the median household income in Sunol?
$215,000 (±$65,719) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sunol?
5.0%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sunol?
35 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sunol work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Pleasanton (15%, 6 mi), San Jose (9%, 20 mi), San Francisco (8%, 32 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Sunol without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sunol, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sunol
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.