Thermalito has higher unemployment (9.9%) than 94% of U.S. towns
6% of workers have no commute at all (California 17%). Jobs and income earn Thermalito D; getting around on foot earns it C−. Measured by household income, Thermalito is behind 81% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Thermalito apart
Thermalito and Oroville trade workers both ways
Oroville is the top workplace for Thermalito residents (31%) and also where the most people who work in Thermalito come from (23% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Thermalito is a place people come home to
There are 393 jobs based in Thermalito, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Thermalito has about 4,700 people in it, 30% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Thermalito are quick
The average trip to work takes 24 minutes, against 29 across California. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical California worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Why Thermalito gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Thermalito is better than 9% of U.S. towns, #792 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds Thermalito’s grade up (ahead of 37% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Thermalito could be anywhere from D to C.
31% of working residents work in Oroville
Where Thermalito clocks in
31% of workers
14% 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.
Who leaves Thermalito for work, and who comes in
On a workday 2,306 residents head out to work, 81 work right here, and 312 people come in from elsewhere.
About 4,700 people are in Thermalito on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
0.16 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.
From Thermalito, about 24 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Thermalito workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,288 commuters (the 6% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
393 jobs are based in Thermalito.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Thermalito, 2013 → 2023: 351 → 393. 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 Thermalito’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Thermalito goes to work
About 27% 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.
Driving is how Thermalito gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Thermalito is more walkable than 15% of U.S. towns, #818 of 847 in California. Both inputs place Thermalito 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 2,446 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 under 0.1 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). 7.3% of Thermalito households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Thermalito’s commuters take a bus or train.
Where Thermalito sits among U.S. towns of 4,700 to 9,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Norwood NJ | 5,817 | $178K | 2.8% | 0.9% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 60 | Las Flores CA | 5,513 | $212K | 4.8% | 1.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 65 | Gold River CA | 7,924 | $175K | 2.9% | 2.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 111 | La Habra Heights CA | 5,327 | $180K | 4.9% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,043 | Shenandoah IA | 4,808 | $60K | 21.0% | 6.4% | 38% | D |
| 3,044 | Carbondale PA | 8,731 | $48K | 26.4% | 8.4% | 15% | D |
| 3,045 | Thermalito CA | 6,720 | $55K | 20.4% | 9.9% | 3% | D |
| 3,046 | Independence KS | 8,193 | $51K | 18.4% | 7.0% | 39% | D |
| 3,047 | Anthony NM | 8,900 | $38K | 32.9% | 11.6% | 13% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 3,253 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Thermalito, the top three, the last and three more from California.
31% of Thermalito works in a town next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Thermalito workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thermalito | – | D | C− | 24 min | $54,865 |
| Oroville | 31% | D | B+ | 20 min | $52,270 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Oroville. Darker towns draw more of Thermalito’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 Thermalito: questions
What is the median household income in Thermalito?
$54,865 (±$5,478) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Thermalito?
20.4%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Thermalito?
24 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Thermalito work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Oroville (31%, 2 mi), Chico (14%, 21 mi), Oroville East (5%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Thermalito walkable?
Thermalito is more walkable than 15% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Thermalito without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Thermalito, from the people who make the trip.
More of Thermalito
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.