Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0Lyman has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.2 for each
536 jobs are based in Lyman; 2,305 of its residents have a job. Jobs and income earn Lyman B; getting around on foot earns it C. Only 6% stay in Lyman for work; outside it, Portland is the main destination (12%, 25 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Lyman in brief
Lyman workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 33 minutes each way, against 25 across Maine. Over a year that’s about 253 hours of commuting, 61 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Lyman is a place people come home to
There are 536 jobs based in Lyman, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Lyman has about 2,900 people in it, 38% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Lyman’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Lyman is Portland, 25 miles away as the crow flies. 12% of working residents (285) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Lyman
66% of Lyman residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 46% of the jobs based in Lyman pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 94% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Lyman has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Lyman went from 386 in 2013 to 536 in 2023, +39%. 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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Jobs & income in Lyman: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lyman is better than 62% of U.S. towns, #59 of 143 in Maine. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Lyman’s grade. It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lyman could be anywhere from C to A.
About 33 minutes each way, longer than most of Maine
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lyman workers work from home, vs 16% across Maine. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,770 commuters (the 19% 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.
A workday in Lyman: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 2,174 residents head out to work, 131 work right here, and 405 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,900 people are in Lyman on a workday afternoon, 38% 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Lyman
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.
29% of the jobs in Lyman make or build things
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lyman, 2013 → 2023: 386 → 536. 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 Lyman’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where Lyman goes to work
Where Lyman clocks in
12% of workers
11% 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.
Getting around Lyman: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lyman is more walkable than 28% of U.S. towns, #93 of 143 in Maine. Both inputs place Lyman 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 2,182 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). 1.5% of Lyman households have no vehicle (Maine 6.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Lyman’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Lyman is 1,577th among 3,867 U.S. towns of 3,300 to 6,400
| # | 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 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 345 | North Yarmouth ME | 4,424 | $129K | 4.8% | 1.9% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 737 | Arundel ME | 4,596 | $102K | 5.9% | 3.0% | 9% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 766 | Hollis ME | 5,003 | $96K | 5.7% | 1.8% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,575 | Bangor PA | 5,118 | $70K | 9.5% | 2.9% | 4% | B |
| 1,576 | Emma Township KS | 4,017 | $75K | 7.0% | 3.7% | 21% | B |
| 1,577 | Lyman ME | 4,713 | $87K | 9.0% | 3.9% | 6% | B |
| 1,578 | Fayette NY | 3,583 | $78K | 9.8% | 1.4% | 8% | B |
| 1,579 | Carroll Township PA | 5,368 | $79K | 13.8% | 2.1% | 4% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 3,867 | 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 Lyman, the top three, the last and three more from Maine.
Work in the towns next to Lyman
The biggest share goes to Waterboro (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lyman workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lyman | – | B | C | 33 min | $87,284 |
| Alfred | under 4% | B | C− | 28 min | $82,321 |
| Dayton | under 4% | A | C | 31 min | $113,750 |
| Waterboro | 3% | B+ | D | 35 min | $89,392 |
| Hollis | under 4% | A− | C | 29 min | $95,950 |
| Arundel | under 4% | A− | C | 23 min | $101,597 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Lyman’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 Lyman: questions
What is the median household income in Lyman?
$87,284 (±$13,628) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,733 across Maine and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lyman?
9.0%, against 10.7% across Maine and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lyman?
33 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Maine and 26 nationally. 19% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lyman work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portland (12%, 25 mi), Biddeford (11%, 14 mi), Saco (6%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lyman walkable?
Lyman is more walkable than 28% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.0 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lyman without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lyman, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lyman
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.