Photo: Unknown photographer · Public domainEarning a living in Columbia Falls
About one in ten work in Columbia Falls itself; outside it, Harrington draws the most (11%, 10 miles). 22% of workers have no commute at all (Maine 16%). Commuters spend 30 minutes getting to work on average; the Maine average is 25, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who commutes out of Columbia Falls, and who commutes in
On a workday 144 residents head out to work, 16 work right here, and 157 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 (1.08 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.
Where Columbia Falls’ working residents head each day
Where Columbia Falls clocks in
11% of workers
10% 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.
In Columbia Falls, 42% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
173 jobs are based in Columbia Falls.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Columbia Falls, 2014 → 2024: 68 → 173. 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 Columbia Falls’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A commute of about 30 minutes in Columbia Falls
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Columbia Falls workers work from home, vs 16% across Maine. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 127 commuters (the 22% 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Columbia Falls
About 27% 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.
Next door to Columbia Falls
The biggest share goes to Columbia (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Columbia Falls workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Falls | – | — | — | 30 min | $43,750 |
| Columbia | 6% | — | — | 31 min | — |
| Jonesboro | under 3% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Addison | 3% | D− | C− | 27 min | $50,524 |
Same-state neighbors only. Columbia and Jonesboro: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Columbia Falls’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 Columbia Falls: questions
What is the median household income in Columbia Falls?
$43,750 (±$4,678) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,733 across Maine and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Columbia Falls?
12.4%, against 10.7% across Maine and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Columbia Falls?
30 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Maine and 26 nationally. 22% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Columbia Falls work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Harrington (11%, 10 mi), Machias (10%, 13 mi), Milbridge (6%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Columbia Falls without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Columbia Falls, from the people who make the trip.
More of Columbia Falls
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.