Campbell County Courthouse · Photo: Paul G. Beswick, Photographer · Public domainFairburn has higher household incomes than 70% of U.S. towns
Jobs and income earn Fairburn B+; getting around on foot earns it B+. The poverty rate is 17.5% (Georgia 13.4%). Only 5% work in Fairburn itself; outside it, Atlanta draws the most (20%, 18 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Fairburn: the figures worth knowing
Fairburn draws workers from far and wide
The 9,137 jobs in Fairburn are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 24%; the other 72% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
48% of the jobs in Fairburn are in trade, transport and utilities, against 29% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
Fairburn has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Fairburn went from 6,006 in 2013 to 9,137 in 2023, +52%. The jobs ↓
Fairburn workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 33 minutes each way, against 28 across Georgia. Over a year that’s about 253 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Fairburn
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Fairburn is better than 68% of U.S. towns, #56 of 263 in Georgia. Job access by car holds Fairburn’s grade up (ahead of 90% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down. It also does well on household income and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Fairburn could be anywhere from B− to A.
Where people from Fairburn work
Where Fairburn clocks in
20% of workers
6% of workers
4% 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.
66% of the jobs in Fairburn pay over $3,333 a month
9,137 jobs are based in Fairburn.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Fairburn, 2013 → 2023: 6,006 → 9,137. 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 Fairburn’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Fairburn: about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Fairburn workers work from home, vs 16% across Georgia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,937 commuters (the 21% who work from home are left out). Across Georgia: 84% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The workday shuffle in and out of Fairburn
On a workday 6,839 residents head out to work, 341 work right here, and 8,796 people come in from elsewhere.
About 19,000 people are in Fairburn on a workday afternoon, 11% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.27 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.
How far Fairburn goes 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.
In Fairburn, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Fairburn is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns, #60 of 263 in Georgia. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.1% across Georgia.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 8,726 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 36% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 6.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 87% 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). 2.5% of Fairburn households have no vehicle (Georgia 5.9%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Fairburn’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Fairburn is 936th among 1,999 U.S. towns of 12,000 to 23,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 155 | Holly Springs GA | 20,261 | $114K | 3.9% | 2.2% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 262 | Vinings GA | 14,390 | $95K | 6.2% | 2.2% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 329 | Flowery Branch GA | 13,110 | $104K | 6.1% | 2.4% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 934 | Doraville GA | 16,365 | $67K | 18.3% | 1.2% | 5% | B+ |
| 935 | Hollins VA | 17,097 | $77K | 8.8% | 3.4% | 10% | B+ |
| 936 | Fairburn GA | 17,133 | $92K | 17.5% | 3.2% | 5% | B+ |
| 937 | Mebane NC | 21,952 | $83K | 7.2% | 3.9% | 11% | B+ |
| 938 | Watauga TX | 22,981 | $91K | 11.3% | 5.1% | 2% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,999 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Fairburn, the top three, the last and three more from Georgia.
Fairburn and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to South Fulton (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Fairburn workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairburn | – | B+ | B+ | 33 min | $91,897 |
| South Fulton | 4% | B | B+ | 33 min | $82,324 |
| Union City | 4% | C+ | B+ | 29 min | $49,549 |
| Palmetto | under 2% | A− | B | 27 min | $80,982 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Fairburn’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 Fairburn: questions
What is the median household income in Fairburn?
$91,897 (±$9,388) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,353 across Georgia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Fairburn?
17.5%, against 13.4% across Georgia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Fairburn?
33 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Georgia and 26 nationally. 20% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Fairburn work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Atlanta (20%, 18 mi), College Park (6%, 10 mi), South Fulton (4%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Fairburn walkable?
Fairburn is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 9.2 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Fairburn without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Fairburn, from the people who make the trip.
More of Fairburn
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.