Photo: Madcoverboy · CC BY-SA 3.0At 6.2%, unemployment in Evanston is higher than in 76% of U.S. towns
About one in five work in Evanston; the top destination outside it is Chicago (38%, 14 miles). The two grades for Evanston are B for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Working from home is the commute for 28% of workers, against 16% across Illinois.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Evanston
Evanston and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Evanston residents (38%) and also where the most people who work in Evanston come from (38% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A lot of Evanston works from home
29% of Evanston workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Nearly all the work in Evanston is services
88% of the jobs based here are in services, such as health care, schools and offices. Only 3% are in factories, building or farms. The jobs ↓
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.
Why Evanston gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Evanston is better than 64% of U.S. towns, #386 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Evanston’s grade up (ahead of 98% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down. It also does well on household income.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Evanston could be anywhere from B to B+.
Commuting out of Evanston: the destinations
Where Evanston clocks in
38% of workers
4% of workers
2% 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.
Each way, about 28 minutes from Evanston
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Evanston workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 26,513 commuters (the 28% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
41,958 jobs are based in Evanston.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Evanston, 2013 → 2023: 42,617 → 41,958. 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 Evanston’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The workday shuffle in and out of Evanston
On a workday 25,684 residents head out to work, 5,581 work right here, and 36,377 people come in from elsewhere.
About 87,000 people are in Evanston on a workday afternoon, 14% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.34 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.
Miles to work from Evanston
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.
Evanston is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Evanston is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #1 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Evanston near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 37,057 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 77% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 17.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 97% 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). 17.3% of Evanston households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 16% of Evanston’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Evanston is 305th among 590 U.S. towns of 53,000 to 103,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | New Trier Township IL | 56,118 | $216K | 2.9% | 4.0% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Vernon Township IL | 71,353 | $146K | 6.3% | 2.4% | 15% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Wheatland Township IL | 92,693 | $173K | 3.2% | 4.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 303 | Wabash Township IN | 66,098 | $41K | 33.4% | 3.8% | 35% | B+ |
| 304 | Napa CA | 76,562 | $106K | 8.5% | 5.7% | 30% | B |
| 305 | Evanston IL | 76,380 | $96K | 11.8% | 6.2% | 18% | B |
| 306 | La Habra CA | 60,908 | $100K | 10.9% | 7.1% | 6% | B |
| 307 | Wyoming MI | 78,588 | $74K | 10.5% | 4.1% | 15% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 590 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 51% | 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 Evanston, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Bordering towns draw 43% of Evanston’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Evanston workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evanston | – | B | A+ | 28 min | $96,434 |
| Skokie | 4% | B+ | A+ | 28 min | $95,337 |
| Niles Township | under 1% | B+ | A+ | 28 min | $97,280 |
| Wilmette | 1% | A+ | A+ | 35 min | $190,662 |
| New Trier Township | under 1% | A+ | A+ | 34 min | $215,916 |
| Chicago | 38% | B− | A+ | 33 min | $77,902 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Chicago. Darker towns draw more of Evanston’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 Evanston: questions
What is the median household income in Evanston?
$96,434 (±$2,339) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Evanston?
11.8%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Evanston?
28 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 28% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Evanston work?
18% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (38%, 14 mi), Skokie (4%, 2 mi), Northbrook (2%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Evanston walkable?
Evanston is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 15.6 out of 20, and 35% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Evanston without a car?
16% of commuters take transit and 17% of households have no car. 77% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Evanston, from the people who make the trip.
More of Evanston
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.