Photo: Sea Cow · CC BY-SA 4.0Wheaton has higher household incomes than 88% of U.S. towns
Jobs and income earn Wheaton A; getting around on foot earns it A+. 5.6% of residents are in poverty, where Illinois as a whole has 11.8%. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.4 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
The work figures that set Wheaton apart
Home offices are common in Wheaton
26% of Wheaton workers work from home, against 16% across Illinois. Time on the road ↓
Wheaton draws workers from far and wide
The 20,528 jobs in Wheaton are filled from a wide area. Wheaton’s own residents hold 13% and the ten next-biggest home towns 30%; the other 57% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Nearly all the work in Wheaton is services
85% 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Wheaton
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Wheaton is better than 92% of U.S. towns, #92 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.7%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Wheaton could be anywhere from A to A+.
About 26 minutes each way for Wheaton’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wheaton workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 19,552 commuters (the 26% 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.
18% of working residents work in Chicago
Where Wheaton clocks in
18% of workers
5% 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.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Wheaton
20,528 jobs are based in Wheaton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wheaton, 2013 → 2023: 22,530 → 20,528. 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 Wheaton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes Wheaton
On a workday 22,017 residents head out to work, 2,729 work right here, and 17,799 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 (0.83 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Wheaton
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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Wheaton
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Wheaton is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns, #63 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Wheaton 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 26,332 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 70% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 16% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 77% 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). 5.4% of Wheaton households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 6% of Wheaton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Wheaton next to U.S. towns of 38,000 to 73,000: 90th of 830 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Liberty Township OH | 40,625 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Bartlett IL | 40,855 | $133K | 4.2% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | New Lenox Township IL | 45,290 | $133K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| 16 | Oswego IL | 39,948 | $124K | 2.6% | 2.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 88 | Friendswood TX | 41,319 | $127K | 3.6% | 4.4% | 9% | A |
| 89 | Chapel Hill NC | 63,565 | $86K | 18.6% | 4.5% | 27% | A |
| 90 | Wheaton IL | 54,065 | $120K | 5.6% | 3.7% | 11% | A |
| 91 | Grafton Township IL | 58,301 | $131K | 4.4% | 3.1% | 6% | A |
| 92 | Anderson Township OH | 44,163 | $122K | 4.0% | 3.1% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 830 | 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 Wheaton, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Next door to Wheaton
The biggest share goes to Glen Ellyn (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Wheaton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheaton | – | A | A+ | 26 min | $120,008 |
| Glen Ellyn | 4% | A | A+ | 29 min | $140,938 |
| Milton Township | under 2% | A | A+ | 27 min | $121,087 |
| Winfield Township | under 2% | B | A− | 27 min | $103,183 |
| Carol Stream | 2% | A | A− | 28 min | $102,309 |
| Winfield | under 2% | A | A | 29 min | $135,795 |
| Lisle | 2% | A | A | 28 min | $107,479 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Wheaton’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 Wheaton: questions
What is the median household income in Wheaton?
$120,008 (±$3,644) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wheaton?
5.6%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wheaton?
26 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wheaton work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (18%, 22 mi), Naperville (5%, 8 mi), Glen Ellyn (4%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Wheaton walkable?
Wheaton is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 11.9 out of 20, and 12% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Wheaton without a car?
6% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 16% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Wheaton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wheaton
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.