Photo: Bnperdue2010 · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Woodridge top those of 78% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 0.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 36.9 in Chicago. Poverty touches 5.5% of residents; Illinois has 11.8%. Jobs and income earn Woodridge A; getting around on foot earns it A.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Woodridge
Woodridge trades workers with the towns around it
Woodridge has about as many jobs (16,631) as working residents (16,622), but they are mostly different people: 15,887 residents leave for work each day while 15,896 people come in. Only 4% of the jobs in Woodridge are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Woodridge and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Woodridge residents (19%) and also where the most people who work in Woodridge come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Woodridge has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Woodridge went from 11,922 in 2014 to 16,631 in 2024, +39%. The jobs ↓
Woodridge draws workers from far and wide
The 16,631 jobs in Woodridge are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 38%; the other 58% come from many towns beyond those. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Woodridge
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Woodridge is better than 87% of U.S. towns, #158 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 (4.2%, 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, Woodridge could be anywhere from A− to A+.
How many people are in Woodridge by day
On a workday 15,887 residents head out to work, 735 work right here, and 15,896 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 (1.00 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.
19% of working residents work in Chicago
Where Woodridge clocks in
19% of workers
6% of workers
6% 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 Woodridge: what the 16,631 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Woodridge, 2014 → 2024: 11,922 → 16,631. 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 Woodridge’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 30 minutes from Woodridge
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Woodridge workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 13,877 commuters (the 23% 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.
The distance from Woodridge to work
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Woodridge
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Woodridge is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns, #122 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Woodridge 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 18,104 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 53% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 12% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 55% 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). 4.3% of Woodridge households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of Woodridge’s commuters take a bus or train.
Woodridge places 298th of 1,255 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 24,000 to 46,000
| # | 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% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 6 | West Deerfield Township IL | 32,111 | $205K | 2.7% | 2.7% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | New Lenox IL | 28,893 | $141K | 1.5% | 2.9% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 30 | Bartlett IL | 40,855 | $133K | 4.2% | 2.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 296 | Rutland Township IL | 29,843 | $106K | 6.1% | 3.4% | 3% | A |
| 297 | Lafayette CO | 30,116 | $119K | 5.6% | 3.8% | 10% | A |
| 298 | Woodridge IL | 34,028 | $101K | 5.5% | 4.2% | 4% | A |
| 299 | Camas WA | 27,749 | $141K | 5.0% | 4.0% | 13% | A |
| 300 | Newington CT | 31,647 | $103K | 6.4% | 3.6% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,255 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 25% | 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 Woodridge, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Bordering towns draw 12% of Woodridge’s workers
The biggest share goes to Downers Grove (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Woodridge workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodridge | – | A | A | 30 min | $101,000 |
| Bolingbrook | 4% | B+ | A− | 30 min | $108,400 |
| Darien | under 2% | A | A | 29 min | $111,215 |
| Downers Grove | 6% | A | A+ | 28 min | $115,114 |
| Lemont | under 2% | A | A | 35 min | $123,370 |
| Romeoville | under 2% | A− | A− | 32 min | $106,325 |
| Lisle | 2% | A | A | 28 min | $107,479 |
| Downers Grove Township | under 2% | A | A | 28 min | $117,335 |
| Lemont Township | under 2% | A | A | 35 min | $120,984 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Woodridge’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 Woodridge: questions
What is the median household income in Woodridge?
$101,000 (±$8,256) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Woodridge?
5.5%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Woodridge?
30 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 23% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Woodridge work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (19%, 20 mi), Naperville (6%, 6 mi), Downers Grove (6%, 4 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Woodridge walkable?
Woodridge is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.8 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Woodridge without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 12% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Woodridge, from the people who make the trip.
More of Woodridge
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.