Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0Most of Thornton commutes out: there are 0.5 jobs for every working resident
36,696 jobs are based in Thornton for 68,132 working residents. The two grades for Thornton are A− for jobs and income and A− for walkability. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 4.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 13.2 in Denver.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Thornton, in a few figures
Thornton has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Thornton went from 20,044 in 2013 to 36,696 in 2023, +83%. The jobs ↓
Thornton and Denver trade workers both ways
Denver is the top workplace for Thornton residents (24%) and also where the most people who work in Thornton come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Thornton workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 25 across Colorado. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 38 more than the state’s typical 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Thornton
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Thornton is better than 80% of U.S. towns, #56 of 159 in Colorado. Job access by car holds Thornton’s grade up (ahead of 88% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.5%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Thornton could be anywhere from B+ to A.
What Thornton’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Thornton, 2013 → 2023: 20,044 → 36,696. 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 Thornton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
24% of working residents work in Denver
Where Thornton clocks in
24% of workers
6% of workers
6% 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.
How long Thornton spends getting to work: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Thornton workers work from home, vs 21% across Colorado. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 65,768 commuters (the 15% 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.
The daily flow of workers through Thornton
On a workday 61,431 residents head out to work, 6,701 work right here, and 29,995 people come in from elsewhere.
About 116,000 people are in Thornton 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 2023, primary jobs.
Half of Thornton commutes less than 11 miles
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.
In Thornton, walking beats the bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Thornton is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns, #69 of 159 in Colorado. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.8% 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 77,686 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 71% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 9% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 82% 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). 3.0% of Thornton households have no vehicle (Colorado 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Thornton’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
Thornton next to U.S. towns of 103,000 to 199,000: 43rd of 238 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carmel IN | 105,634 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 23% | A+ |
| 2 | Clay Township IN | 104,932 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 23% | A+ |
| 3 | Fishers IN | 104,812 | $130K | 4.0% | 2.8% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Centennial CO | 108,658 | $132K | 3.3% | 4.6% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Arvada CO | 122,901 | $117K | 5.8% | 3.8% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Boulder CO | 105,689 | $87K | 21.5% | 6.0% | 44% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 41 | Round Rock TX | 141,282 | $99K | 7.8% | 3.8% | 18% | A− |
| 42 | Maine Township IL | 136,611 | $98K | 6.7% | 5.1% | 13% | A− |
| 43 | Thornton CO | 147,766 | $103K | 7.0% | 4.5% | 10% | A− |
| 44 | Woodbridge Township NJ | 104,802 | $109K | 8.4% | 4.9% | 13% | A− |
| 45 | Tempe AZ | 190,571 | $80K | 15.8% | 5.5% | 25% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 238 | Macon-Bibb County GA | 157,556 | $51K | 24.7% | 8.1% | 53% | 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 Thornton, the top three, the last and three more from Colorado.
The towns next door employ 14% of Thornton
The biggest share goes to Westminster (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Thornton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thornton | – | A− | A− | 30 min | $103,088 |
| Northglenn | under 3% | B+ | A− | 28 min | $84,030 |
| Todd Creek | under 3% | A+ | C− | 32 min | $194,362 |
| Welby | under 3% | B | A− | 28 min | $80,026 |
| Commerce City | 4% | A− | A− | 30 min | $111,972 |
| Sherrelwood | under 3% | B | A+ | 30 min | $75,327 |
| Broomfield | 4% | A | A | 26 min | $123,874 |
| Federal Heights | under 3% | C | A | 32 min | $56,597 |
| Westminster | 6% | A− | A− | 27 min | $100,272 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Thornton’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 Thornton: questions
What is the median household income in Thornton?
$103,088 (±$2,467) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,470 across Colorado and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Thornton?
7.0%, against 9.4% across Colorado and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Thornton?
30 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Colorado and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Thornton work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Denver (24%, 11 mi), Westminster (6%, 7 mi), Aurora (6%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Thornton walkable?
Thornton is more walkable than 80% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 11.8 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Thornton without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 9% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Thornton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Thornton
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.