Photo: Ron Cogswell · CC BY 2.0Household incomes in Barrington are higher than in 95% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Barrington is better than 97% of U.S. towns (A+); for walkability it is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (A). 4.6% of residents live below the poverty line; Illinois has 11.8%. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Barrington
Home offices are common in Barrington
34% of Barrington workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Barrington’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Barrington is Chicago, 32 miles away as the crow flies. 17% of working residents (773) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Barrington draws workers from far and wide
The 7,333 jobs in Barrington are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 28%; the other 68% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Barrington is where the jobs are
Barrington has 7,333 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
The biggest group of Barrington’s workers comes from Chicago
568 of the people who work in Barrington live in Chicago, 32 miles away, more than from any other town. The commute map ↓
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.
Jobs & income in Barrington: the grade in detail
Household income is its strongest input ($147,989, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (2.8%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Barrington could be anywhere from A to A+.
How long Barrington spends getting to work: about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Barrington workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,067 commuters (the 34% who work from home are left out). Across Illinois: 78% drive alone, 7% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
How far it is to work from Barrington
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.
Who travels to work in Barrington, and from where
Where Barrington clocks in
17% 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.
The daily commute in and out of Barrington
On a workday 4,343 residents head out to work, 267 work right here, and 7,066 people come in from elsewhere.
About 13,000 people are in Barrington on a workday afternoon, 26% more than live here.
1.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
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 Barrington’s employers do
7,333 jobs are based in Barrington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Barrington, 2013 → 2023: 9,338 → 7,333. 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 Barrington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Barrington is easy on foot, hard by bus
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,637 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 25% 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 3.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 79% 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). 6.4% of Barrington households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 9% of Barrington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 7,000 to 14,000, Barrington ranks 123rd of 2,878 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Long Grove IL | 8,343 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Riverside IL | 8,939 | $154K | 3.3% | 1.9% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Western Springs IL | 13,588 | $230K | 1.3% | 3.1% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 121 | Linthicum MD | 11,313 | $135K | 3.3% | 3.1% | 7% | A+ |
| 122 | Fallston MD | 10,013 | $155K | 4.6% | 0.5% | 4% | A+ |
| 123 | Barrington IL | 10,586 | $148K | 4.6% | 2.8% | 6% | A+ |
| 124 | Burr Ridge IL | 11,179 | $157K | 3.9% | 3.4% | 4% | A+ |
| 125 | Hollis NH | 8,819 | $169K | 1.9% | 2.0% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,878 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Barrington, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
The towns around Barrington
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Barrington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barrington | – | A+ | A | 31 min | $147,989 |
| Barrington Hills | under 2% | A | A− | 30 min | $205,074 |
| Cuba Township | under 2% | A | A− | 32 min | $154,263 |
| Ela Township | under 2% | A+ | A− | 31 min | $173,916 |
| Deer Park | under 2% | A+ | A | 28 min | $174,458 |
| Inverness | under 2% | A+ | B+ | 26 min | $207,434 |
| Barrington Township | under 2% | A | A | 29 min | $183,663 |
| Palatine Township | under 2% | A− | A− | 27 min | $104,916 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Barrington’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 Barrington: questions
What is the median household income in Barrington?
$147,989 (±$21,058) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Barrington?
4.6%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Barrington?
31 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 34% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Barrington work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (17%, 32 mi), Schaumburg (6%, 9 mi), Hoffman Estates (4%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Barrington walkable?
Barrington is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 9.7 out of 20, and 10% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Barrington without a car?
9% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Barrington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Barrington
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.