Photo: M.M.Dwyer · CC BY-SA 4.0At 6.7%, unemployment in Stratford is higher than in 80% of U.S. towns
About one in seven work in Stratford itself; outside it, Bridgeport draws the most (12%, 4 miles). The two grades for Stratford are B+ for jobs and income and A for walkability. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 4.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 31.8 in Stamford.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Stratford: the figures worth knowing
Stratford trades workers with the towns around it
Stratford has about as many jobs (24,221) as working residents (25,799), but they are mostly different people: 22,683 residents leave for work each day while 21,105 people come in. Only 13% of the jobs in Stratford are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Stratford makes and builds things
44% of the jobs based in Stratford are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Stratford residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 12%. The jobs ↓
A lot of Stratford works one town over
26% of working residents work in a town that borders Stratford: Bridgeport (12%), Milford (6%) and Shelton (5%). Next door ↓
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.
Stratford’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Stratford is better than 70% of U.S. towns, #110 of 155 in Connecticut. Job access by car holds Stratford’s grade up (ahead of 89% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. 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, Stratford could be anywhere from B to A−.
Who leaves Stratford for work, and who comes in
On a workday 22,683 residents head out to work, 3,116 work right here, and 21,105 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 (0.94 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.
Goods jobs make up 44% of work in Stratford
24,221 jobs are based in Stratford.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Stratford, 2013 → 2023: 25,857 → 24,221. 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 Stratford’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where the trip to work from Stratford ends
Where Stratford clocks in
12% of workers
7% 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.
Each way, about 30 minutes from Stratford
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Stratford workers work from home, vs 16% across Connecticut. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 22,719 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Connecticut: 82% drive alone, 4% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The distance from Stratford to work
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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Stratford
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Stratford is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns, #23 of 155 in Connecticut. Both inputs place Stratford 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 26,605 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 74% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 16% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.3 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). 5.6% of Stratford households have no vehicle (Connecticut 8.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of Stratford’s commuters take a bus or train.
Stratford places 400th of 830 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 38,000 to 73,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Liberty Township OH | 40,625 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 85 | Southington CT | 44,242 | $124K | 4.9% | 3.4% | 17% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 144 | West Hartford CT | 64,242 | $130K | 6.3% | 4.1% | 14% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 184 | Wallingford CT | 44,406 | $105K | 5.4% | 3.9% | 21% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 398 | Tamiami FL | 49,752 | $78K | 11.6% | 3.4% | 5% | B+ |
| 399 | Euless TX | 60,008 | $82K | 7.8% | 5.5% | 4% | B+ |
| 400 | Stratford CT | 53,908 | $96K | 6.7% | 6.7% | 12% | B+ |
| 401 | Newnan GA | 45,867 | $82K | 8.6% | 3.4% | 13% | B+ |
| 402 | Huber Heights OH | 43,905 | $79K | 9.6% | 3.4% | 9% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 830 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Stratford, the top three, the last and three more from Connecticut.
Stratford and its neighbors: 26% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Stratford workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stratford | – | B+ | A | 30 min | $95,815 |
| Bridgeport | 12% | C | A+ | 31 min | $58,685 |
| Shelton | 5% | A− | B− | 30 min | $108,185 |
| Milford | 6% | A | A− | 25 min | $110,669 |
| Trumbull | 3% | A− | A− | 33 min | $163,073 |
| Trumbull Center | under 4% | — | — | 33 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Trumbull Center: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Bridgeport. Darker towns draw more of Stratford’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 Stratford: questions
What is the median household income in Stratford?
$95,815 (±$6,955) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,781 across Connecticut and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Stratford?
6.7%, against 10.0% across Connecticut and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Stratford?
30 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Connecticut and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Stratford work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Bridgeport (12%, 4 mi), New York City (7%, 57 mi), Milford (6%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Stratford walkable?
Stratford is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.4 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Stratford without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 16% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Stratford, from the people who make the trip.
More of Stratford
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.