Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0Fewer people are out of work in Sterlington (1.4%) than in 91% of U.S. towns
Working residents average 26 minutes each way, about the same as across Louisiana. Sterlington grades B− for jobs and income and B for walkability. Only 3% work in Sterlington itself; outside it, Monroe draws the most (45%, 12 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Sterlington apart on work
Nearly half of Sterlington works in Monroe
356 working residents, 45%, have their main job in Monroe, 12 miles away. That’s 15 times as many as work in Sterlington itself. The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Sterlington
58% of Sterlington residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 35% of the jobs based in Sterlington pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 97% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Sterlington pay little
31% of the jobs based in Sterlington pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 39% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. 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 789 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The four measures behind Sterlington’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Sterlington is better than 50% of U.S. towns, #41 of 161 in Louisiana. Unemployment holds Sterlington’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (17.3%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Sterlington could be anywhere from C to B+.
Commuting out of Sterlington: the destinations
Where Sterlington clocks in
45% of workers
7% 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.
The 558 jobs based in Sterlington
558 jobs are based in Sterlington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sterlington, 2013 → 2023: 284 → 558. 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 Sterlington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who works in Sterlington, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 769 residents head out to work, 20 work right here, and 538 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.
0.71 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
About 26 minutes each way, about the LA average
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sterlington workers work from home, vs 8% across Louisiana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,003 commuters (the 3% who work from home are left out). Across Louisiana: 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.
How far Sterlington goes to work
About 17% 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 Sterlington, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Sterlington is more walkable than 64% of U.S. towns, #64 of 161 in Louisiana. Both inputs place Sterlington 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 1,029 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). 8.5% of Sterlington households have no vehicle (Louisiana 8.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Sterlington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Sterlington places 2,204th of 4,797 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 1,900 to 3,600
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 43 | Bayou Gauche LA | 1,908 | $163K | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 260 | Hahnville LA | 3,520 | $101K | 6.7% | 0.0% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 273 | Montz LA | 2,074 | $92K | 4.7% | 0.2% | <1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,202 | Bloom Township OH | 2,517 | $74K | 12.6% | 3.2% | 3% | B− |
| 2,203 | Cudjoe Key FL | 2,492 | $88K | 8.6% | 2.5% | 11% | B− |
| 2,204 | Sterlington LA | 2,663 | $69K | 17.3% | 1.4% | 3% | B− |
| 2,205 | Upland PA | 3,049 | $62K | 10.0% | 5.8% | 5% | B− |
| 2,206 | Orangeville Township MI | 3,497 | $83K | 6.9% | 5.7% | 4% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,797 | Cibecue AZ | 2,228 | $26K | 57.2% | 13.3% | 12% | 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 Sterlington, the top three, the last and three more from Louisiana.
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 Sterlington: questions
What is the median household income in Sterlington?
$69,007 (±$21,670) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $60,756 across Louisiana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sterlington?
17.3%, against 18.9% across Louisiana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sterlington?
26 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Louisiana and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sterlington work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Monroe (45%, 12 mi), West Monroe (7%, 13 mi), Ruston (3%, 35 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Sterlington walkable?
Sterlington is more walkable than 64% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 7.3 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Sterlington without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sterlington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sterlington
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.