Almost no one in High Ridge’s labor force is looking for work
Commuters spend 28 minutes getting to work on average; Missouri averages 24, the U.S. 26. Jobs and income earn High Ridge A−; getting around on foot earns it B+. Only 2% stay in High Ridge for work; outside it, St. Louis is the main destination (11%, 20 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in High Ridge, in brief
The better-paid jobs are outside High Ridge
63% of High Ridge residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 38% of the jobs based in High Ridge pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
34% of the jobs based in High Ridge are held by workers 29 or younger, against 21% of High Ridge’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.
The four measures behind High Ridge’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, High Ridge is better than 83% of U.S. towns, #49 of 247 in Missouri. Unemployment holds High Ridge’s grade up (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($70,917, U.S. $80,734). 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, High Ridge could be anywhere from B+ to A.
The kinds of work in High Ridge
1,536 jobs are based in High Ridge.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in High Ridge, 2013 → 2023: 1,270 → 1,536. 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 High Ridge’s own residents hold wherever they work.
High Ridge on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,965 residents head out to work, 31 work right here, and 1,505 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,300 people are in High Ridge on a workday afternoon, 12% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.77 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 High Ridge goes to work
Where High Ridge clocks in
11% 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.
About 28 minutes to work from High Ridge
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of High Ridge workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,717 commuters (the 9% 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.
Miles to work from High Ridge
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.
Getting around High Ridge: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, High Ridge is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns, #87 of 247 in Missouri. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.8% 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 1,895 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 2.4% of High Ridge households have no vehicle (Missouri 6.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of High Ridge’s commuters take a bus or train.
High Ridge places 707th of 4,318 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 2,600 to 5,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | St. Paul MO | 3,849 | $159K | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 179 | Frontenac MO | 3,790 | $233K | 2.0% | 4.4% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 290 | Rock Hill MO | 4,668 | $95K | 5.2% | 2.6% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 705 | Hope Township MI | 3,218 | $99K | 5.6% | 0.9% | 4% | A− |
| 706 | Elk Township NJ | 4,520 | $141K | 3.9% | 6.3% | 5% | A− |
| 707 | High Ridge MO | 3,714 | $71K | 7.2% | 0.0% | 2% | A− |
| 708 | Paint Township OH | 4,602 | $97K | 8.1% | 0.4% | 13% | A− |
| 709 | Sugarloaf Township PA | 4,068 | $103K | 4.0% | 3.2% | 7% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,318 | 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 High Ridge, the top three, the last and three more from Missouri.
Next door to High Ridge
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | High Ridge workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Ridge | – | A− | B+ | 28 min | $70,917 |
| Peaceful Village | under 2% | — | — | 12 min | — |
| Parkdale | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Peaceful Village and Parkdale: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of High Ridge’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 High Ridge: questions
What is the median household income in High Ridge?
$70,917 (±$9,494) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in High Ridge?
7.2%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from High Ridge?
28 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in High Ridge work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are St. Louis (11%, 20 mi), Maryland Heights (5%, 18 mi), Fenton (4%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is High Ridge walkable?
High Ridge is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.5 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around High Ridge without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from High Ridge, from the people who make the trip.
More of High Ridge
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.