Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 3.0Federal Heights has 0.4 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
There are 2,383 jobs in Federal Heights, against 5,372 working residents. The two grades for Federal Heights are C for jobs and income and A for walkability. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 2.6 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 13.2 in Denver.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Federal Heights at work: what stands out
Federal Heights workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 32 minutes each way, against 25 across Colorado. Over a year that’s about 245 hours of commuting, 54 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
A young workforce
30% of Federal Heights’ working residents are 29 or younger. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Income, poverty and work: Federal Heights’ grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Federal Heights is better than 30% of U.S. towns, #135 of 159 in Colorado. Job access by car holds Federal Heights’ grade up (ahead of 93% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (24.2%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Federal Heights could be anywhere from C− to B−.
How long Federal Heights spends getting to work: about 32 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Federal Heights workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,147 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across Colorado: 82% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
What Federal Heights’ employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Federal Heights, 2014 → 2024: 2,890 → 2,383. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Federal Heights’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily flow of workers through Federal Heights
On a workday 5,298 residents head out to work, 74 work right here, and 2,309 people come in from elsewhere.
About 11,000 people are in Federal Heights on a workday afternoon, 21% 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 2024, primary jobs.
22% of working residents work in Denver
Where Federal Heights clocks in
22% of workers
7% of workers
7% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Federal Heights
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Good to walk, short on transit: Federal Heights
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Federal Heights is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns, #39 of 159 in Colorado. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 6.4% across Colorado.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,672 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, 28% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 2.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 73% 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). 3.6% of Federal Heights households have no vehicle (Colorado 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Federal Heights’ commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Federal Heights is 1,767th of 2,227 U.S. towns of 10,000 to 19,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 49 | Cherry Creek CO | 10,721 | $154K | 5.0% | 1.8% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 85 | Timnath CO | 11,600 | $178K | 4.4% | 0.6% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 109 | Greenwood Village CO | 15,323 | $149K | 3.1% | 3.3% | 13% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,765 | Freeport TX | 10,508 | $61K | 13.7% | 5.7% | 12% | C |
| 1,766 | Center Point AL | 15,538 | $56K | 14.3% | 8.1% | 2% | C |
| 1,767 | Federal Heights CO | 14,075 | $57K | 24.2% | 6.5% | 1% | C |
| 1,768 | Bellefontaine Neighbors MO | 10,368 | $49K | 21.4% | 5.9% | 2% | C |
| 1,769 | Kelso WA | 12,801 | $67K | 12.0% | 6.6% | 12% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 2,227 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 Federal Heights, the top three, the last and three more from Colorado.
12% of Federal Heights works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Westminster (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Federal Heights workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal Heights | – | C | A | 32 min | $56,597 |
| Thornton | 5% | A− | A− | 30 min | $103,088 |
| Sherrelwood | under 3% | B | A+ | 30 min | $75,327 |
| Westminster | 7% | A− | A− | 27 min | $100,272 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Federal Heights’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 2024, 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 Federal Heights: questions
What is the median household income in Federal Heights?
$56,597 (±$6,116) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,470 across Colorado and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Federal Heights?
24.2%, against 9.4% across Colorado and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Federal Heights?
32 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Colorado and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Federal Heights work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Denver (22%, 10 mi), Aurora (7%, 19 mi), Westminster (7%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Federal Heights walkable?
Federal Heights is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 14.4 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Federal Heights without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 28% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Federal Heights, from the people who make the trip.
More of Federal Heights
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.