Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Work, pay and getting to work in West Dennis
West Dennis has 662 jobs, against 811 working residents. About one in ten work in West Dennis; the top destination outside it is Dennis (18%, 3 miles). A typical one-way commute lasts 17 minutes, where Massachusetts has 29 and the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in West Dennis, in brief
Commutes from West Dennis are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 29 across Massachusetts. That’s about 92 hours a year less on the road than the typical Massachusetts worker, and quicker than any town next door (24 to 31 minutes). Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
30% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
West Dennis’ workforce skews older
37% of West Dennis’ working residents are 55 or older. The jobs ↓
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; with 811 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Getting to work from West Dennis takes about 17 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of West Dennis workers work from home, vs 19% across Massachusetts. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 993 commuters (the 24% 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.
West Dennis’ commute, mile by mile
About 30% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
What West Dennis’ employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in West Dennis, 2014 → 2024: 650 → 662. 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 West Dennis’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A workday in West Dennis: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 746 residents head out to work, 65 work right here, and 597 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 (0.82 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.
The places West Dennis commutes to
Where West Dennis clocks in
13% of workers
7% 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.
How West Dennis compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Yarmouth (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | West Dennis workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Dennis | – | — | — | 17 min | $95,758 |
| Dennis Port | under 2% | — | — | 31 min | — |
| South Yarmouth | under 2% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Yarmouth | 7% | B− | A− | 24 min | $86,039 |
| South Dennis | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Dennis Port, South Yarmouth and South Dennis: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of West Dennis’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 West Dennis: questions
What is the median household income in West Dennis?
$95,758 (±$18,449) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,960 across Massachusetts and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in West Dennis?
6.9%, against 10.0% across Massachusetts and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from West Dennis?
17 minutes each way on average, against 29 across Massachusetts and 26 nationally. 24% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in West Dennis work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Dennis (18%, 3 mi), Barnstable Town (13%, 10 mi), Yarmouth (7%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around West Dennis without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from West Dennis, from the people who make the trip.
More of West Dennis
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.