Washington County Courthouse · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0Households in Washington have lower incomes than those in 76% of U.S. towns
7.1% of residents are in poverty, next to 11.3% for Kansas as a whole. Washington grades C− for jobs and income and A for walkability. About one in four stay in Washington for work; outside it, Marysville is the main destination (10%, 22 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Washington and work: the main findings
Commutes from Washington are quick
The average trip to work takes 14 minutes, against 20 across Kansas. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Kansas worker. Time on the road ↓
Many jobs in Washington pay little
26% of the jobs based in Washington pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. 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; with 477 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How Washington earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty and job access, Washington is better than 24% of U.S. towns. The poverty rate holds Washington’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 5% of U.S. towns).
Unemployment (1.8%) is left out: Washington’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Washington could be anywhere from D to C+.
Washington’s commute takes about 14 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Washington workers work from home, vs 12% across Kansas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 506 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across Kansas: 85% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
What work there is in Washington: 531 jobs
531 jobs are based in Washington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Washington, 2013 → 2023: 566 → 531. 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 Washington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many people are in Washington by day
On a workday 364 residents head out to work, 113 work right here, and 418 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 (1.11 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.
Where the trip to work from Washington ends
Where Washington clocks in
10% of workers
3% 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.
Where in the region Washington works
About 25% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
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.
In Washington, walking beats the bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Washington is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Washington 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 560 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 2.2% of Washington households have no vehicle (Kansas 5.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Washington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Washington next to U.S. towns of 700 to 1,400: 1,952nd of 3,133 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 30 | Lake Quivira KS | 1,005 | $178K | 3.8% | 0.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 56 | Delaware Township KS | 1,121 | $119K | 2.4% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Payne Township KS | 1,375 | $104K | 1.8% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,950 | Richland Township OH | 1,217 | $50K | 5.6% | 4.5% | 3% | C− |
| 1,951 | Falkville AL | 1,121 | $47K | 14.9% | 1.9% | 4% | C− |
| 1,952 | Washington KS | 1,063 | $58K | 7.1% | 1.8% | 24% | C− |
| 1,953 | Payne OH | 1,188 | $63K | 17.4% | 5.1% | 5% | C− |
| 1,954 | Pleasant Township IN | 1,375 | $105K | 22.3% | 0.0% | 1% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,133 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | 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 Washington, the top three, the last and three more from Kansas.
Washington and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Washington Township (3%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Washington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | – | C− | A | 14 min | $58,438 |
| Washington Township | 3% | — | — | 14 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Washington Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Washington’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 Washington: questions
What is the median household income in Washington?
$58,438 (±$4,195) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,275 across Kansas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Washington?
7.1%, against 11.3% across Kansas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Washington?
14 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Kansas and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Washington work?
24% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Marysville (10%, 22 mi), Hanover (7%, 11 mi), Manhattan (3%, 49 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Washington walkable?
Washington is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.6 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Washington without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Washington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Washington
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.