Photo: JJBers · CC BY-SA 4.0Work and commuting in Willimantic
Commuters spend 23 minutes getting to work on average; the Connecticut average is 27, the U.S. 26. 6% of workers work from home, where Connecticut as a whole has 16%. About one in five stay in Willimantic for work; outside it, Windham is the main destination (22%, 2 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Willimantic apart
How a workday changes Willimantic
On a workday 5,578 residents head out to work, 1,243 work right here, and 5,674 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 (1.01 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 the trip to work from Willimantic ends
Where Willimantic clocks in
22% of workers
10% of workers
3% 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.
What Willimantic’s employers do
6,917 jobs are based in Willimantic.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Willimantic, 2013 → 2023: 7,411 → 6,917. 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 Willimantic’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 23 minutes to work from Willimantic
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Willimantic workers work from home, vs 16% across Connecticut. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,291 commuters (the 6% 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.
Where in the region Willimantic works
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.
Next door is work for 13% of Willimantic
The biggest share goes to Mansfield (10%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Willimantic workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willimantic | – | — | — | 23 min | $45,962 |
| Mansfield | 10% | A− | A | 21 min | $72,393 |
| Coventry | under 2% | A | C− | 27 min | $108,213 |
| Columbia | 1% | B+ | C− | 32 min | $127,000 |
| South Windham | under 2% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Lebanon | 2% | A | D | 31 min | $109,135 |
Same-state neighbors only. South Windham: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Willimantic’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 Willimantic: questions
What is the median household income in Willimantic?
$45,962 (±$6,554) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $95,781 across Connecticut and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Willimantic?
23.4%, against 10.0% across Connecticut and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Willimantic?
23 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Connecticut and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Willimantic work?
18% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Windham (22%, 2 mi), Mansfield (10%, 5 mi), Norwich (3%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Willimantic without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 17% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Willimantic, from the people who make the trip.
More of Willimantic
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.