Photo: John Trainor from Roswell, GA, USA · CC BY 2.0McDonough has higher unemployment (5.5%) than 68% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute lasts 33 minutes, next to 28 for Georgia and 26 for the U.S. Jobs and income earn McDonough B−; getting around on foot earns it B. Only 7% stay in McDonough for work; outside it, Atlanta is the main destination (16%, 27 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in McDonough, in brief
McDonough trades workers with the towns around it
McDonough has about as many jobs (14,160) as working residents (12,688), but they are mostly different people: 11,812 residents leave for work each day while 13,284 people come in. Only 6% of the jobs in McDonough are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
McDonough draws workers from far and wide
The 14,160 jobs in McDonough are filled from a wide area. McDonough’s own residents hold 6% and the ten next-biggest home towns 13%; the other 81% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
McDonough’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside McDonough is Atlanta, 27 miles away as the crow flies. 16% of working residents (1,978) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
McDonough 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.
Inside McDonough’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, McDonough is better than 54% of U.S. towns, #92 of 263 in Georgia. Job access by car holds McDonough’s grade up (ahead of 81% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, McDonough could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
Who leaves McDonough for work, and who comes in
On a workday 11,812 residents head out to work, 876 work right here, and 13,284 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 (1.12 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.
The places McDonough commutes to
Where McDonough clocks in
16% of workers
4% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from McDonough
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.
Getting to work from McDonough takes about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of McDonough workers work from home, vs 16% across Georgia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 13,562 commuters (the 12% 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.
What work there is in McDonough: 14,160 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in McDonough, 2013 → 2023: 11,200 → 14,160. 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 McDonough’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute in McDonough is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, McDonough is more walkable than 62% of U.S. towns, #100 of 263 in Georgia. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.0% 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 15,394 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.3% of McDonough households have no vehicle (Georgia 5.9%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of McDonough’s commuters take a bus or train.
How McDonough ranks: 855th of 1,315 U.S. towns of 23,000 to 45,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 59 | Milton GA | 41,266 | $171K | 4.3% | 2.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 253 | Decatur GA | 25,276 | $139K | 6.2% | 4.3% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 276 | Woodstock GA | 39,895 | $103K | 6.6% | 2.7% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 853 | Brooklyn Center MN | 31,846 | $73K | 12.3% | 5.8% | 5% | B− |
| 854 | Golden Gate FL | 29,234 | $68K | 15.1% | 2.8% | 5% | B− |
| 855 | McDonough GA | 33,395 | $75K | 10.6% | 5.5% | 7% | B− |
| 856 | Garden City KS | 27,402 | $73K | 11.0% | 2.7% | 45% | B− |
| 857 | Garfield NJ | 33,353 | $80K | 13.4% | 6.7% | 7% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,315 | 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 McDonough, the top three, the last and three more from Georgia.
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 McDonough: questions
What is the median household income in McDonough?
$75,343 (±$9,372) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,353 across Georgia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in McDonough?
10.6%, against 13.4% across Georgia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from McDonough?
33 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Georgia and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in McDonough work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Atlanta (16%, 27 mi), College Park (4%, 23 mi), Stockbridge (3%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is McDonough walkable?
McDonough is more walkable than 62% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 8.2 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around McDonough without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from McDonough, from the people who make the trip.
More of McDonough
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.