District Heights has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.1 for each
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 7.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 26.3 in Baltimore. Employers in District Heights report 341 jobs for 2,448 working residents. District Heights grades 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
District Heights and work: the main findings
A lot of District Heights workers cross into Washington, D.C.
34% of District Heights workers work outside Maryland, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Washington (33%), Arlington (2%) and Alexandria (2%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Short distances, slow trips
Half of District Heights’ working residents have a job less than 8 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 36 minutes, longer than the Maryland average of 31. Time on the road ↓
District Heights is a place people come home to
There are 341 jobs based in District Heights, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday District Heights has about 3,800 people in it, 35% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Few District Heights workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 19% across Maryland. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Fewer jobs are based in District Heights than ten years ago
Jobs counted in District Heights fell from 518 in 2013 to 341 in 2023, −34%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. 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.
What’s behind District Heights’ Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, District Heights is better than 50% of U.S. towns, #222 of 261 in Maryland. Job access by car holds District Heights’ grade up (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.8%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, District Heights could be anywhere from C− to A.
33% of working residents work in Washington
Where District Heights clocks in
33% 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.
Commuting from District Heights: about 36 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of District Heights workers work from home, vs 19% across Maryland. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,477 commuters (the 2% who work from home are left out). Across Maryland: 80% drive alone, 5% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Who works in District Heights, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 2,437 residents head out to work, 11 work right here, and 330 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,800 people are in District Heights on a workday afternoon, 35% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Jobs in District Heights: what the 341 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in District Heights, 2013 → 2023: 518 → 341. 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 District Heights’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far District Heights goes to work
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: District Heights
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, District Heights is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns, #47 of 261 in Maryland. Both inputs place District Heights 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 2,536 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 89% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 78% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 7.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 91% 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). 9.8% of District Heights households have no vehicle (Maryland 8.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 12% of District Heights’ commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 4,200 to 8,000, District Heights ranks 1,838th of 3,336 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Fulton MD | 5,677 | $222K | 0.7% | 1.7% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Riva MD | 4,976 | $176K | 1.1% | 1.2% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Hampton MD | 5,372 | $171K | 3.8% | 0.5% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,836 | North Manchester IN | 5,230 | $61K | 10.7% | 1.8% | 32% | B− |
| 1,837 | Ulysses KS | 5,524 | $64K | 7.6% | 0.9% | 41% | B− |
| 1,838 | District Heights MD | 5,938 | $87K | 17.6% | 6.8% | <1% | B− |
| 1,839 | Horseheads NY | 6,275 | $61K | 11.8% | 2.6% | 14% | B− |
| 1,840 | Peters Township PA | 4,473 | $77K | 12.4% | 1.5% | 9% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,336 | Medina TX | 4,226 | $22K | 53.8% | 10.1% | 4% | 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 District Heights, the top three, the last and three more from Maryland.
District Heights and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Forestville (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | District Heights workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District Heights | – | B− | A+ | 36 min | $86,955 |
| Walker Mill | under 2% | B | A | 39 min | $88,333 |
| Forestville | 2% | B | A+ | 35 min | $70,579 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of District Heights’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 District Heights: questions
What is the median household income in District Heights?
$86,955 (±$35,457) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,678 across Maryland and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in District Heights?
17.6%, against 9.4% across Maryland and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from District Heights?
36 minutes each way on average, against 31 across Maryland and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in District Heights work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (33%, 8 mi), Baltimore (3%, 34 mi), Arlington (2%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is District Heights walkable?
District Heights is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 12.0 out of 20, and 12% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around District Heights without a car?
12% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. 78% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from District Heights, from the people who make the trip.
More of District Heights
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.