Photo: Ichabod · CC BY-SA 3.0With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of Raytown works elsewhere
There are 7,718 jobs in Raytown; 14,409 of its residents have a job. Raytown grades B− for jobs and income and B for walkability. The average commute takes 24 minutes each way, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Raytown, in a few figures
Raytown and Kansas City trade workers both ways
Kansas City is the top workplace for Raytown residents (38%) and also where the most people who work in Raytown come from (25% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
A lot of Raytown workers cross into Kansas
20% of Raytown workers work outside Missouri, most of them in Kansas, the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
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.
How Raytown earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Raytown is better than 50% of U.S. towns, #102 of 247 in Missouri. Job access by car holds Raytown’s grade up (ahead of 91% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (5.6%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Raytown could be anywhere from C+ to B+.
38% of working residents work in Kansas City
Where Raytown clocks in
38% 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.
Who works in Raytown, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 13,574 residents head out to work, 835 work right here, and 6,883 people come in from elsewhere.
About 22,000 people are in Raytown on a workday afternoon, 23% 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.
The kinds of work in Raytown
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Raytown, 2013 → 2023: 8,391 → 7,718. 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 Raytown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Raytown: about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Raytown workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 13,059 commuters (the 12% 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.
Half of Raytown commutes less than 10 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.
Most of Raytown commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Raytown is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns, #142 of 247 in Missouri. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.9% 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 14,760 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 37% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, <1% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 67% 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). 4.8% of Raytown households have no vehicle (Missouri 6.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Raytown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 20,000 to 39,000, Raytown ranks 1,000th of 1,467 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Wildwood MO | 34,955 | $161K | 2.2% | 2.3% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 122 | Ballwin MO | 30,901 | $125K | 4.8% | 2.9% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 131 | Kirkwood MO | 29,331 | $121K | 5.3% | 3.1% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 998 | Van Buren Township MI | 29,770 | $78K | 10.7% | 8.5% | 5% | B− |
| 999 | Galloway Township NJ | 38,380 | $91K | 9.6% | 7.2% | 13% | B− |
| 1,000 | Raytown MO | 29,154 | $69K | 12.5% | 5.6% | 6% | B− |
| 1,001 | Williston ND | 29,522 | $79K | 8.1% | 4.9% | 57% | B− |
| 1,002 | Batavia Township OH | 28,855 | $78K | 12.7% | 4.9% | 8% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,467 | Barstow CA | 24,804 | $53K | 23.1% | 11.9% | 17% | 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 Raytown, the top three, the last and three more from Missouri.
The towns next door employ 38% of Raytown
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Raytown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raytown | – | B− | B | 24 min | $68,840 |
| Kansas City | 38% | B− | A | 22 min | $69,166 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Kansas City. Darker towns draw more of Raytown’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 Raytown: questions
What is the median household income in Raytown?
$68,840 (±$5,642) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Raytown?
12.5%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Raytown?
24 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Raytown work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Kansas City (38%, 10 mi), Lee's Summit (6%, 6 mi), Overland Park (6%, 14 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Raytown walkable?
Raytown is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 9.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Raytown without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. <1% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Raytown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Raytown
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.