Photo: Original uploaded by Fredlander (Transfered by Gary Dee) · Public domainUnemployment in Arnold (2.8%) is lower than in 73% of U.S. towns
A typical one-way commute lasts 27 minutes; Missouri averages 24, the U.S. 26. For jobs and income Arnold is better than 78% of U.S. towns (A−); for walkability it is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns (B). Only 7% work in Arnold; the top destination outside it is St. Louis (16%, 16 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Arnold: the gist
Arnold trades workers with the towns around it
Arnold has about as many jobs (10,015) as working residents (10,284), but they are mostly different people: 9,519 residents leave for work each day while 9,250 people come in. Only 8% of the jobs in Arnold are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Arnold draws workers from far and wide
The 10,015 jobs in Arnold are filled from a wide area. Arnold’s own residents hold 8% and the ten next-biggest home towns 20%; the other 72% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
32% of the jobs based in Arnold are held by workers 29 or younger, against 24% of Arnold’s own working residents. 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.
Inside Arnold’s Jobs & income grade
Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 88% of U.S. towns); household income ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns ($78,370, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Arnold could be anywhere from B to A.
Arnold on a workday afternoon
On a workday 9,519 residents head out to work, 765 work right here, and 9,250 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 (0.97 per resident).
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 Arnold ends
Where Arnold clocks in
16% 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 10,015 jobs based in Arnold
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Arnold, 2013 → 2023: 8,705 → 10,015. 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 Arnold’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Arnold spends getting to work: about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Arnold workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9,933 commuters (the 8% who work from home are left out). Across Missouri: 86% 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.
Arnold’s commute, mile by mile
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 Arnold, the car does most of the work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.2% across Missouri.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 10,812 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 50% 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 0.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 55% 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). 2.7% of Arnold households have no vehicle (Missouri 6.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Arnold’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Arnold is 633rd of 1,705 U.S. towns of 15,000 to 28,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Wolf Trap VA | 15,858 | $250K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Dardenne Prairie MO | 15,032 | $153K | 1.3% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 142 | Creve Coeur MO | 18,480 | $127K | 6.1% | 2.6% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 190 | Webster Groves MO | 23,450 | $115K | 4.2% | 3.7% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 631 | Cloverly MD | 16,646 | $152K | 7.2% | 6.8% | 2% | A− |
| 632 | Hastings MN | 22,563 | $94K | 5.4% | 4.9% | 23% | A− |
| 633 | Arnold MO | 20,994 | $78K | 8.2% | 2.8% | 7% | A− |
| 634 | Greenfield IN | 26,544 | $76K | 5.3% | 3.3% | 20% | A− |
| 635 | Takoma Park MD | 17,260 | $108K | 9.1% | 4.9% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,705 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Arnold, the top three, the last and three more from Missouri.
Work in the towns next to Arnold
Jobs & commute next door
Darker towns draw more of Arnold’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 Arnold: questions
What is the median household income in Arnold?
$78,370 (±$6,883) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Arnold?
8.2%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Arnold?
27 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Arnold work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are St. Louis (16%, 16 mi), Fenton (4%, 8 mi), Maryland Heights (4%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Arnold walkable?
Arnold is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 10.2 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Arnold without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Arnold, from the people who make the trip.
More of Arnold
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.