North Market Street Historic District · Photo: Tradewinds · CC BY-SA 3.0Household incomes in Washington trail those of 96% of U.S. towns
23.1% of residents live below the poverty line (North Carolina 13.0%). For jobs and income Washington is better than 20% of U.S. towns (C−); for walkability it is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns (B+). 7% of workers work from home; North Carolina has 16%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Washington stands out on work
Washington is where the jobs are
Washington has 7,960 jobs, 2.2 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 14,000 people are in town, 43% more than the 9,900 who live here. Day and night ↓
Washington draws workers from far and wide
The 7,960 jobs in Washington are filled from a wide area. Washington’s own residents hold 11% and the ten next-biggest home towns 21%; the other 68% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
The biggest group of Washington’s workers comes from Greenville
556 of the people who work in Washington live in Greenville, 19 miles away, more than from any other town. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Washington are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 25 across North Carolina. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical North Carolina worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
Why Washington gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Unemployment holds Washington’s grade up (3.5%, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($40,186, U.S. $80,734).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Washington could be anywhere from D to C+.
In and out of Washington on a workday
On a workday 2,755 residents head out to work, 914 work right here, and 7,046 people come in from elsewhere.
About 14,000 people are in Washington on a workday afternoon, 43% more than live here.
2.2 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
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 Washington’s workforce comes from
Where Washington clocks in
16% of workers
3% of workers
2% 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 20 minutes to work from Washington
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Washington workers work from home, vs 16% across North Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,053 commuters (the 7% who work from home are left out). Across North Carolina: 85% 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.
Jobs in Washington: what the 7,960 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Washington, 2013 → 2023: 7,470 → 7,960. 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 Washington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Half of Washington commutes less than 20 miles
About 29% 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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Few in Washington walk, bike or ride to work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.9% across North Carolina.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,340 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). 12.4% of Washington households have no vehicle (North Carolina 5.3%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Washington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 2,792 U.S. towns of 6,900 to 13,400, Washington comes 2,384th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 185 | Oak Ridge NC | 7,896 | $155K | 3.6% | 2.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 285 | Rolesville NC | 12,839 | $150K | 1.1% | 3.7% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 357 | Summerfield NC | 11,327 | $160K | 7.1% | 2.1% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,382 | Havre MT | 9,264 | $50K | 18.2% | 2.9% | 55% | C− |
| 2,383 | Conway NH | 10,308 | $64K | 8.0% | 8.3% | 44% | C− |
| 2,384 | Washington NC | 9,910 | $40K | 23.1% | 3.5% | 25% | C− |
| 2,385 | White River Township IN | 7,169 | $59K | 14.2% | 5.9% | 29% | C− |
| 2,386 | Brown Township OH | 7,280 | $57K | 14.8% | 7.9% | 14% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,792 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Washington, the top three, the last and three more from North Carolina.
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 Washington: questions
What is the median household income in Washington?
$40,186 (±$6,752) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,388 across North Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Washington?
23.1%, against 13.0% across North Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Washington?
20 minutes each way on average, against 25 across North Carolina and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Washington work?
25% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Greenville (16%, 18 mi), Raleigh (3%, 91 mi), New Bern (2%, 33 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Washington walkable?
Washington is more walkable than 71% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.9 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Washington without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Washington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Washington
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.