Photo: edward P. steinburg desnged · CC BY-SA 3.0At 6.4%, unemployment in Waukegan is higher than in 78% of U.S. towns
For 8% of workers, the job is at home, next to 16% for Illinois as a whole. The two grades for Waukegan are C+ for jobs and income and A− for walkability. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 5.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Waukegan: the gist
Waukegan trades workers with the towns around it
Waukegan has about as many jobs (28,867) as working residents (33,325), but they are mostly different people: 27,980 residents leave for work each day while 23,522 people come in. Only 19% of the jobs in Waukegan are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Waukegan’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Waukegan is Chicago, 38 miles away as the crow flies. 8% of working residents (2,804) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
No single place dominates Waukegan’s commute
The biggest draw, Chicago, gets only 8% of working residents, and 51% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Waukegan residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Inside Waukegan’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Waukegan is better than 44% of U.S. towns, #537 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Waukegan’s grade up (ahead of 89% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Waukegan could be anywhere from C+ to B−.
The workday shuffle in and out of Waukegan
On a workday 27,980 residents head out to work, 5,345 work right here, and 23,522 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 (0.87 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
How far it is to work from Waukegan
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The places Waukegan commutes to
Where Waukegan clocks in
8% 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.
Jobs in Waukegan: what the 28,867 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Waukegan, 2014 → 2024: 33,311 → 28,867. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Waukegan’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Waukegan spends getting to work: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Waukegan workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 40,714 commuters (the 8% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Waukegan
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Waukegan is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns, #215 of 768 in Illinois. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 10.8% across Illinois.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 44,085 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 91% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 47% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 5.1 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). 8.4% of Waukegan households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Waukegan’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 507 U.S. towns of 62,000 to 119,000, Waukegan comes 375th on jobs and income
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | Vernon Township IL | 71,353 | $146K | 6.3% | 2.4% | 15% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Wheatland Township IL | 92,693 | $173K | 3.2% | 4.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 36 | Arlington Heights IL | 76,216 | $117K | 6.0% | 3.5% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 373 | Penn Township IN | 68,726 | $66K | 12.5% | 5.3% | 20% | C+ |
| 374 | Turlock CA | 72,864 | $83K | 11.3% | 8.4% | 25% | C+ |
| 375 | Waukegan IL | 87,940 | $72K | 15.3% | 6.4% | 16% | C+ |
| 376 | Fort Myers FL | 101,581 | $64K | 16.3% | 4.2% | 24% | C+ |
| 377 | El Monte CA | 105,075 | $68K | 17.4% | 6.3% | 9% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 507 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 50% | 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 Waukegan, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Next door is work for 12% of Waukegan
The biggest share goes to Gurnee (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Waukegan workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waukegan | – | C+ | A− | 26 min | $71,919 |
| Beach Park | under 2% | B | A− | 28 min | $85,664 |
| Waukegan Township | under 2% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Park City | under 2% | B− | B | 25 min | $60,171 |
| Gurnee | 6% | A | B+ | 27 min | $119,628 |
| Wadsworth | under 2% | B | C | 27 min | $142,738 |
| Green Oaks | under 2% | A− | B+ | 31 min | $147,614 |
| Warren Township | under 2% | A− | B+ | 27 min | $104,155 |
| North Chicago | 4% | C | A+ | 17 min | $60,172 |
| Libertyville Township | 2% | A | A | 26 min | $134,398 |
| Newport Township | under 2% | B+ | B− | 27 min | $125,074 |
Same-state neighbors only. Waukegan Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Waukegan’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 2024, 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 Waukegan: questions
What is the median household income in Waukegan?
$71,919 (±$3,861) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Waukegan?
15.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Waukegan?
26 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Waukegan work?
16% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (8%, 38 mi), Gurnee (6%, 3 mi), North Chicago (4%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Waukegan walkable?
Waukegan is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 12.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Waukegan without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. 47% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Waukegan, from the people who make the trip.
More of Waukegan
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.