Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Unemployment in Burlington (2.8%) is lower than in 73% of U.S. towns
Jobs & income C+: better than 43% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #118 of 159 in Colorado.
Walkability A: more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns · #47 of 159 in Colorado.
Household incomes here are lower than in 52% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 17 minutes each way (Colorado 25, U.S. 26). About half work in Burlington; the top destination outside it is Denver (3%, 143 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Burlington, in brief
Commutes from Burlington are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 25 across Colorado. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical Colorado worker. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
34% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
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.
What’s behind Burlington’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Burlington is better than 43% of U.S. towns, #118 of 159 in Colorado. Unemployment holds Burlington’s grade up (2.8%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 5% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Burlington could be anywhere from D to B+.
About 17 minutes each way, quicker than most of Colorado
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Burlington workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,297 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across Colorado: 82% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Half of Burlington commutes less than 2 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 34% 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.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 675 residents head out to work, 646 work right here, and 871 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 (1.15 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 Burlington goes to work
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Burlington clocks in
3% of workers
2% of workers
2% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
What the 1,517 jobs in Burlington are
1,517 jobs are based in Burlington. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Burlington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Burlington, 2013 → 2023: 1,314 → 1,517. 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.
Burlington 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, Burlington is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns, #47 of 159 in Colorado. Both inputs place Burlington 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 1,445 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 9.8% of Burlington households have no vehicle (Colorado 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Burlington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Burlington is 2,644th of 4,698 U.S. towns of 2,200 to 4,300 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Burlington, the top three, the last and three more from Colorado.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Stepping Stone CO | 3,137 | $224K | 0.0% | 2.5% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 48 | Sierra Ridge CO | 3,663 | $158K | 0.1% | 2.4% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 70 | Genesee CO | 3,778 | $187K | 2.4% | 2.2% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,642 | Union ME | 2,444 | $81K | 10.2% | 3.2% | 9% | C+ |
| 2,643 | Borrego Springs CA | 2,700 | $86K | 3.5% | 6.1% | 27% | C+ |
| 2,644 | Burlington CO | 3,164 | $74K | 9.2% | 2.8% | 49% | C+ |
| 2,645 | Norway MI | 2,815 | $64K | 13.9% | 0.0% | 13% | C+ |
| 2,646 | Ely NV | 3,946 | $78K | 7.6% | 3.9% | 61% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,698 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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.
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 Burlington: questions
What is the median household income in Burlington?
$74,308 (±$15,803) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,470 across Colorado and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Burlington?
9.2%, against 9.4% across Colorado and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Burlington?
17 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Colorado and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Burlington work?
49% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Denver (3%, 143 mi), Colorado Springs (2%, 137 mi), Pueblo (2%, 145 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Burlington walkable?
Burlington is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 9.6 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Burlington without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Burlington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Burlington
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.