Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domainFewer people are out of work in Buxton (1.4%) than in 91% of U.S. towns
Only 8% work in Buxton itself; outside it, Portland draws the most (22%, 18 miles). Buxton grades A for jobs and income and C for walkability. Household incomes here are higher than in 77% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Buxton at work: what stands out
Income, poverty and work: Buxton’s grade explained
The poverty rate is its strongest input (2.3%, U.S. 12.5%); job access by car ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (ahead of 55% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Buxton could be anywhere from A− to A+.
From Buxton, about 34 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Buxton workers work from home, vs 16% across Maine. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,655 commuters (the 9% who work from home are left out). Across Maine: 84% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Buxton by day and by night
On a workday 3,943 residents head out to work, 336 work right here, and 1,584 people come in from elsewhere.
About 6,300 people are in Buxton on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
0.45 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
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 the trip to work from Buxton ends
Where Buxton clocks in
22% of workers
11% of workers
9% 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 1,920 jobs based in Buxton
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Buxton, 2013 → 2023: 1,667 → 1,920. 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 Buxton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Half of Buxton commutes less than 12 miles
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.
The commute in Buxton is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Buxton is more walkable than 33% of U.S. towns, #79 of 143 in Maine. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 5.0% across Maine.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 5,106 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 7.9% of Buxton households have no vehicle (Maine 6.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Buxton’s commuters take a bus or train.
Buxton places 370th of 2,893 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 6,100 to 11,700
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 3 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 95 | Cumberland ME | 8,876 | $174K | 3.1% | 0.2% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 314 | Cape Elizabeth ME | 9,827 | $146K | 5.2% | 2.5% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 368 | Rumson NJ | 7,157 | $250K | 3.2% | 4.5% | 7% | A |
| 369 | Watchung NJ | 6,583 | $174K | 1.2% | 6.1% | 3% | A |
| 370 | Buxton ME | 8,681 | $100K | 2.3% | 1.4% | 8% | A |
| 371 | Southwick MA | 9,305 | $120K | 4.0% | 3.1% | 11% | A |
| 372 | Fort Meade MD | 11,225 | $103K | 4.1% | 3.7% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 758 | Gray ME | 8,676 | $95K | 3.5% | 3.4% | 9% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,893 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Buxton, the top three, the last and three more from Maine.
11% of Buxton works in a town next door
The biggest share goes to Gorham (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Buxton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buxton | – | A | C | 34 min | $100,144 |
| Hollis | under 2% | A− | C | 29 min | $95,950 |
| Dayton | under 2% | A | C | 31 min | $113,750 |
| Gorham | 5% | A | A− | 27 min | $112,312 |
| Standish | 2% | A− | B− | 29 min | $104,593 |
| Saco | 4% | A− | B+ | 24 min | $92,241 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Buxton’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 Buxton: questions
What is the median household income in Buxton?
$100,144 (±$20,547) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,733 across Maine and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Buxton?
2.3%, against 10.7% across Maine and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Buxton?
34 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Maine and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Buxton work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portland (22%, 18 mi), South Portland (11%, 13 mi), Westbrook (9%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Buxton walkable?
Buxton is more walkable than 33% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 7.0 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Buxton without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Buxton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Buxton
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.