Photo: WestportWiki · CC BY-SA 3.0Household incomes in Provincetown top those of 93% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 3.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 47.9 in Boston. Poverty touches 6.2% of residents, against 10.0% across Massachusetts. The two grades for Provincetown are B− for jobs and income and A+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Provincetown stands out on work
Commutes from Provincetown are quick
The average trip to work takes 13 minutes, against 29 across Massachusetts. That’s about 123 hours a year less on the road than the typical Massachusetts worker. Time on the road ↓
Home offices are common in Provincetown
32% of Provincetown workers work from home, against 19% across Massachusetts. Time on the road ↓
Provincetown’s workforce skews older
43% of Provincetown’s working residents are 55 or older. That’s about two in five. 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.
Jobs & income in Provincetown: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Provincetown is better than 46% of U.S. towns, #251 of 283 in Massachusetts. Household income holds Provincetown’s grade up ($136,904, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 5% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Provincetown could be anywhere from C to B+.
From Provincetown, about 13 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Provincetown workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,552 commuters (the 32% who work from home are left out). Across Massachusetts: 75% drive alone, 8% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The kinds of work in Provincetown
1,543 jobs are based in Provincetown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Provincetown, 2013 → 2023: 1,569 → 1,543. 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 Provincetown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Provincetown
On a workday 694 residents head out to work, 643 work right here, and 900 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 (1.15 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.
5% of working residents work in Boston
Where Provincetown clocks in
5% of workers
4% of workers
2% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Provincetown
About 22% 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.
Provincetown is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Provincetown is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #15 of 283 in Massachusetts. Both inputs place Provincetown 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 2,266 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 83% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 18% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 78% 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). 10.1% of Provincetown households have no vehicle (Massachusetts 11.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Provincetown’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Provincetown is 2,391st of 4,318 U.S. towns of 2,600 to 5,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 107 | West Newbury MA | 4,709 | $180K | 1.6% | 2.4% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 113 | Wenham MA | 4,952 | $195K | 3.7% | 2.6% | 14% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 137 | Avon MA | 4,861 | $131K | 4.6% | 2.5% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,389 | Honeoye Falls NY | 2,841 | $82K | 10.3% | 11.0% | 13% | B− |
| 2,390 | Vigo Township IN | 4,014 | $59K | 9.7% | 1.2% | 7% | B− |
| 2,391 | Provincetown MA | 3,729 | $137K | 6.2% | 7.2% | 48% | B− |
| 2,392 | Lake California CA | 3,808 | $92K | 9.7% | 4.6% | 1% | B− |
| 2,393 | Lake Caroline VA | 2,862 | $73K | 23.1% | 0.0% | <1% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,318 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Provincetown, the top three, the last and three more from Massachusetts.
Provincetown and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Truro (4%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Provincetown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provincetown | – | B− | A+ | 13 min | $136,904 |
| Truro | 4% | B | B− | 30 min | $118,984 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Provincetown’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 Provincetown: questions
What is the median household income in Provincetown?
$136,904 (±$44,081) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Provincetown?
6.2%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Provincetown?
13 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 32% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Provincetown work?
48% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boston (5%, 46 mi), Truro (4%, 7 mi), Barnstable Town (2%, 29 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Provincetown walkable?
Provincetown is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 13.9 out of 20, and 32% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Provincetown without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. 18% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Provincetown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Provincetown
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.