Photo: Eric Shalov · CC BY-SA 3.0More people are out of work in West Athens (10.0%) than in 94% of U.S. towns
Only 2% work in West Athens; the top destination outside it is Los Angeles (36%, 9 miles). West Athens grades C+ for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. A typical one-way commute lasts 26 minutes (California 29, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set West Athens apart
The four measures behind West Athens’ grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, West Athens is better than 39% of U.S. towns, #587 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds West Athens’ grade up (among the top U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Athens could be anywhere from C to B.
The towns that employ West Athens’ residents
Where West Athens clocks in
5% 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.
In and out of West Athens on a workday
On a workday 3,387 residents head out to work, 76 work right here, and 1,474 people come in from elsewhere.
About 6,800 people are in West Athens on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
0.45 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.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in West Athens
1,550 jobs are based in West Athens.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Athens, 2013 → 2023: 1,313 → 1,550. 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 West Athens’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from West Athens: about 26 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Athens workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,862 commuters (the 15% 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.
How many miles West Athens 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.
West Athens is more walkable than 95% of U.S. towns
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,357 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, 80% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 15.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 97% 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). 15.3% of West Athens households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of West Athens’ commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, West Athens is 2,022nd of 2,927 U.S. towns of 6,100 to 11,800
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 3 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | Piedmont CA | 10,642 | $250K | 4.3% | 1.5% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 65 | Gold River CA | 7,924 | $175K | 2.9% | 2.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 98 | Sierra Madre CA | 10,620 | $144K | 4.6% | 2.6% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,020 | Sitka AK | 8,319 | $102K | 7.5% | 6.8% | — | C+ |
| 2,021 | Cocoa Beach FL | 11,314 | $88K | 9.6% | 9.0% | 18% | C+ |
| 2,022 | West Athens CA | 8,726 | $67K | 15.3% | 10.0% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,023 | Cottage Grove OR | 10,851 | $81K | 10.7% | 6.0% | 18% | C+ |
| 2,024 | Schroeppel NY | 7,956 | $73K | 15.0% | 5.4% | 7% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,927 | 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 West Athens, the top three, the last and three more from California.
38% of West Athens works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Athens workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Athens | – | C+ | A+ | 26 min | $67,201 |
| Hawthorne | 2% | B− | A | 28 min | $75,848 |
| Los Angeles | 36% | B− | A+ | 31 min | $81,939 |
| Westmont | under 2% | C− | A | 34 min | $50,509 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Los Angeles. Darker towns draw more of West Athens’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 West Athens: questions
What is the median household income in West Athens?
$67,201 (±$9,026) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Athens?
15.3%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Athens?
26 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Athens work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Los Angeles (36%, 9 mi), Torrance (5%, 7 mi), Long Beach (4%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Athens walkable?
West Athens is more walkable than 95% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 13.9 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Athens without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 15% of households have no car. 80% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Athens, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Athens
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.