Mallows Bay-Widewater Historic and Archeological District · Photo: Amazur · CC BY-SA 3.0Most of Indian Head commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident
Only 1% work in Indian Head itself; outside it, Washington draws the most (19%, 22 miles). Indian Head has 387 jobs; 1,684 of its residents have a job. For jobs and income Indian Head is better than 70% of U.S. towns (B+); for walkability it is more walkable than 40% of U.S. towns (C+).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Indian Head
Indian Head workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 45 minutes each way, against 31 across Maryland. Over a year that’s about 345 hours of commuting, 107 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
A lot of Indian Head workers cross into Washington, D.C.
27% of Indian Head workers work outside Maryland, most of them in Washington, D.C., the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
Indian Head is a place people come home to
There are 387 jobs based in Indian Head, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Indian Head has about 2,900 people in it, 31% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Indian Head’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Indian Head is Washington, DC, 22 miles away as the crow flies. 19% of working residents (317) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
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.
Indian Head’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
Unemployment is its strongest input (3.1%, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (9.7%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Indian Head could be anywhere from C to A+.
From Indian Head, about 45 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 14.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Indian Head workers work from home, vs 19% across Maryland. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,827 commuters (the 16% 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.
The towns that employ Indian Head’s residents
Where Indian Head clocks in
19% of workers
8% of workers
6% 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 workday shuffle in and out of Indian Head
On a workday 1,659 residents head out to work, 25 work right here, and 362 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,900 people are in Indian Head on a workday afternoon, 31% 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.
Where in the region Indian Head works
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.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Indian Head
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Indian Head, 2013 → 2023: 342 → 387. 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 Indian Head’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Most trips from Indian Head start in a car
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,175 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 4.0% of Indian Head households have no vehicle (Maryland 8.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Indian Head’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 2,900 to 5,700, Indian Head ranks 1,296th of 4,195 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Riva MD | 4,976 | $176K | 1.1% | 1.2% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | Brown Station MD | 3,451 | $169K | 3.3% | 1.2% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,294 | Marshall WI | 3,696 | $86K | 12.3% | 2.2% | 5% | B+ |
| 1,295 | Randolph Township IL | 4,342 | $110K | 6.9% | 4.5% | 8% | B+ |
| 1,296 | Indian Head MD | 4,202 | $89K | 9.7% | 3.1% | 1% | B+ |
| 1,297 | Emerald Isle NC | 3,970 | $90K | 4.9% | 1.2% | 20% | B+ |
| 1,298 | Ridgemark CA | 3,403 | $130K | 4.6% | 4.4% | 2% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,195 | 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 Indian Head, the top three, the last and three more from Maryland.
How Indian Head compares with the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Indian Head workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Head | – | B+ | C+ | 45 min | $89,063 |
| Potomac Heights | under 2% | B | A− | 32 min | $71,786 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Indian Head’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 Indian Head: questions
What is the median household income in Indian Head?
$89,063 (±$21,327) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,678 across Maryland and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Indian Head?
9.7%, against 9.4% across Maryland and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Indian Head?
45 minutes each way on average, against 31 across Maryland and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Indian Head work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (19%, 22 mi), Waldorf (8%, 13 mi), La Plata (6%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Indian Head walkable?
Indian Head is more walkable than 40% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.8 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Indian Head without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Indian Head, from the people who make the trip.
More of Indian Head
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.