Photo: Preservation Maryland · CC BY-SA 2.0With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of Waldorf works elsewhere
18,688 jobs are based in Waldorf for 35,154 working residents. Jobs and income earn Waldorf B+; getting around on foot earns it B+. Measured by household income, Waldorf is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Waldorf apart on work
A lot of Waldorf workers cross into Washington, D.C.
30% of Waldorf workers work outside Maryland, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Washington (22%), Arlington (3%) and Alexandria (2%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Waldorf workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 41 minutes each way, against 31 across Maryland. Over a year that’s about 314 hours of commuting, 77 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Waldorf draws workers from far and wide
The 18,688 jobs in Waldorf are filled from a wide area. Waldorf’s own residents hold 21% and the ten next-biggest home towns 14%; the other 65% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Waldorf
68% of Waldorf residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 48% of the jobs based in Waldorf pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 89% leave town for their job. 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.
The figures behind Waldorf’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Waldorf is better than 72% of U.S. towns, #160 of 261 in Maryland. Household income holds Waldorf’s grade up ($116,089, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (5.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Waldorf could be anywhere from B to A−.
22% of working residents work in Washington
Where Waldorf clocks in
22% of workers
4% 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 daily trip from Waldorf: about 41 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 13.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Waldorf workers work from home, vs 19% across Maryland. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 37,096 commuters (the 17% 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 kinds of work in Waldorf
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Waldorf, 2013 → 2023: 18,176 → 18,688. 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 Waldorf’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who works in Waldorf, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 31,289 residents head out to work, 3,865 work right here, and 14,823 people come in from elsewhere.
About 66,000 people are in Waldorf on a workday afternoon, 20% 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.
The distance from Waldorf 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.
In Waldorf, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Waldorf is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns, #161 of 261 in Maryland. Both inputs place Waldorf 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 44,446 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 2% 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 2.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 70% 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). 3.8% of Waldorf households have no vehicle (Maryland 8.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of Waldorf’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 58,000 to 112,000, Waldorf ranks 229th of 555 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| 4 | Bethesda MD | 69,397 | $192K | 4.3% | 3.1% | 16% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Ellicott City MD | 75,257 | $157K | 3.7% | 3.0% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 42 | Bowie MD | 58,383 | $142K | 3.8% | 4.7% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 227 | Ames IA | 68,220 | $61K | 25.5% | 5.8% | 52% | B+ |
| 228 | Little Elm TX | 62,727 | $119K | 9.0% | 6.6% | 3% | B+ |
| 229 | Waldorf MD | 82,943 | $116K | 7.7% | 5.9% | 11% | B+ |
| 230 | Chino Hills CA | 77,519 | $126K | 7.6% | 6.9% | 6% | B+ |
| 231 | Hamburg NY | 60,768 | $89K | 6.1% | 5.2% | 19% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 555 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 51% | 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 Waldorf, the top three, the last and three more from Maryland.
Work in the towns next to Waldorf
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Waldorf workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waldorf | – | B+ | B+ | 41 min | $116,089 |
| Accokeek | under 1% | A− | B | 42 min | $150,815 |
| Bensville | under 1% | A | C− | 42 min | $170,072 |
| Brandywine | under 1% | A− | B | 42 min | $157,587 |
| Cedarville | under 1% | — | — | 23 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Cedarville: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Waldorf’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 Waldorf: questions
What is the median household income in Waldorf?
$116,089 (±$4,371) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $103,678 across Maryland and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Waldorf?
7.7%, against 9.4% across Maryland and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Waldorf?
41 minutes each way on average, against 31 across Maryland and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Waldorf work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (22%, 21 mi), La Plata (4%, 6 mi), Arlington (3%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Waldorf walkable?
Waldorf is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.5 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Waldorf without a car?
4% 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 Waldorf, from the people who make the trip.
More of Waldorf
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.