West Melbourne’s household incomes are higher than in 71% of U.S. towns
Jobs & income B+: better than 70% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #175 of 638 in Florida.
Walkability B: more walkable than 58% of U.S. towns · #398 of 638 in Florida.
Working residents average 23 minutes each way (Florida 28, U.S. 26). Only 7% work in West Melbourne; the top destination outside it is Melbourne (28%, 4 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in West Melbourne
West Melbourne trades workers with the towns around it
West Melbourne has about as many jobs (10,847) as working residents (11,080), but they are mostly different people: 10,352 residents leave for work each day while 10,119 people come in. Only 7% of the jobs in West Melbourne are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of West Melbourne works one town over
42% of working residents work in a town that borders West Melbourne: Melbourne (28%) and Palm Bay (14%). Next door ↓
West Melbourne has added jobs fast
Jobs based in West Melbourne went from 7,503 in 2013 to 10,847 in 2023, +45%. The jobs ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside West Melbourne
61% of West Melbourne residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 42% of the jobs based in West Melbourne pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 93% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Commutes from West Melbourne are quick
The average trip to work takes 23 minutes, against 28 across Florida. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Florida 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.
What’s behind West Melbourne’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, West Melbourne is better than 70% of U.S. towns, #175 of 638 in Florida. Household income holds West Melbourne’s grade up ($92,986, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (4.5%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, West Melbourne could be anywhere from B to A−.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 10,352 residents head out to work, 728 work right here, and 10,119 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 (0.98 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.
What the 10,847 jobs in West Melbourne are
10,847 jobs are based in West Melbourne. Here is what they are, next to the jobs West Melbourne’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Melbourne, 2013 → 2023: 7,503 → 10,847. 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.
About 23 minutes each way, quicker than most of Florida
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Melbourne workers work from home, vs 16% across Florida. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 11,221 commuters (the 18% who work from home are left out). Across Florida: 83% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
28% of working residents work in Melbourne
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where West Melbourne clocks in
28% of workers
14% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
Half of West Melbourne commutes less than 8 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
About 27% 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.
Most trips from West Melbourne start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, West Melbourne is more walkable than 58% of U.S. towns, #398 of 638 in Florida. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.6% across Florida.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 13,635 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 45% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, <1% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 5.3 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 85% 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). 4.1% of West Melbourne households have no vehicle (Florida 6.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of West Melbourne’s commuters take a bus or train.
West Melbourne is 642nd of 1,334 U.S. towns of 22,000 to 42,000 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of West Melbourne, the top three, the last and three more from Florida.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 88 | Parkland FL | 39,186 | $199K | 4.3% | 3.1% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 92 | Jacksonville Beach FL | 23,615 | $121K | 4.8% | 1.8% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 104 | Palmetto Bay FL | 24,886 | $142K | 5.8% | 2.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 640 | Sun City Center FL | 33,548 | $74K | 8.3% | 2.2% | 4% | B+ |
| 641 | Beverly Hills CA | 30,764 | $133K | 9.6% | 8.3% | 14% | B+ |
| 642 | West Melbourne FL | 31,285 | $93K | 7.3% | 4.5% | 7% | B+ |
| 643 | Roseville MN | 35,663 | $87K | 7.5% | 5.9% | 9% | B+ |
| 644 | Duluth GA | 33,815 | $95K | 8.9% | 5.6% | 5% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,334 | Barstow CA | 24,804 | $53K | 23.1% | 11.9% | 17% | 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.
42% of West Melbourne works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Melbourne (28%). Darker towns draw more of West Melbourne’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Melbourne workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Melbourne | – | B+ | B | 23 min | $92,986 |
| June Park | under 2% | B+ | B− | 24 min | $88,243 |
| Melbourne | 28% | C+ | A | 23 min | $66,991 |
| Melbourne Village | under 2% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Palm Bay | 14% | C+ | B+ | 28 min | $72,614 |
Same-state neighbors only. Melbourne Village: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 West Melbourne: questions
What is the median household income in West Melbourne?
$92,986 (±$5,312) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,568 across Florida and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Melbourne?
7.3%, against 12.6% across Florida and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Melbourne?
23 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Florida and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Melbourne work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Melbourne (28%, 4 mi), Palm Bay (14%, 7 mi), Rockledge (5%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is West Melbourne walkable?
West Melbourne is more walkable than 58% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 9.4 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around West Melbourne without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. <1% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Melbourne, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Melbourne
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.