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Jobs & commute in White Cliffs

About two in three of White Cliffs’ working residents commute to Gallup

Working residents average 32 minutes each way (New Mexico 24, U.S. 26). Only 0% work in White Cliffs; the top destination outside it is Gallup (66%, 5 miles).

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

Day and night

White Cliffs quiets down on a workday

On a workday 177 residents head out to work, 0 work right here, and 5 people come in from elsewhere.

177live here, work elsewhere
0live and work here
5work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night580
Workday410
580live here− 180head out to work+ 5come in to work= 410on a workday

About 410 people are in White Cliffs on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.03jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.03 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute 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.

The commute map

66% of working residents work in Gallup

A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.

Grants: 2 residents work here (1%)Gallup: 117 residents work here (66%)Farmington: 2 residents work here (1%)Albuquerque: 6 residents work here (3%)Santa Fe: 3 residents work here (2%)St. Michaels: 6 residents work here (3%)Fort Defiance: 4 residents work here (2%)White CliffsCrestview: 2 residents work here (1%)Church Rock: 2 residents work here (1%)Thoreau: 3 residents work here (2%)GallupAlbuquerqueSt. MichaelsFort DefianceSanta FeThoreauWhite Cliffs
1
Gallup5.1 mi away
66%117
2
Albuquerque117.8 mi away
3%6
3
St. Michaels, AZ25.5 mi away
3%6
4
Fort Defiance, AZ26.5 mi away
2%4
5
Santa Fe150.9 mi away
2%3
6
Thoreau27.5 mi away
2%3
7
Grants54.2 mi away
1%2
8
Farmington87.5 mi away
1%2
9
Crestview11.7 mi away
1%2
10
Church Rock5.3 mi away
1%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
17%30
The top trips

Where White Cliffs clocks in

Lines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.

The jobs

White Cliffs makes things: 40% of its jobs are in goods

5 jobs are based in White Cliffs. Here is what they are, next to the jobs White Cliffs’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in White CliffsJobs White Cliffs residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms40%5%
Trade, transport & utilities60%16%
Services: health, schools, offices0%79%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less20%18%
$1,251–$3,333 a month60%38%
Over $3,333 a month20%44%

Who does it

29 or younger20%23%
30 to 5480%58%
55 and older0%19%
−77%

Jobs based in White Cliffs, 2013 → 2023: 22 → 5. 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.

Time on the road

About 32 minutes each way, longer than most of New Mexico

From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.

A year of commuting
246 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.3 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

White Cliffs32 min
New Mexico24 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
0%

of White Cliffs workers work from home, vs 12% across New Mexico. Their commute is the hallway.

About 0 in 10
How White Cliffs gets to work
48%Drive alone
52%Carpool

Share of the 289 commuters (the 0% who work from home are left out). Across New Mexico: 84% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.

How far

Half of White Cliffs commutes less than 5 miles

Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miGallup: 66% · 5.1 miAlbuquerque: 3% · 117.8 miSt. Michaels: 3% · 25.5 miFort Defiance: 2% · 26.5 miSanta Fe: 2% · 150.9 miThoreau: 2% · 27.5 miGrants: 1% · 54.2 miFarmington: 1% · 87.5 miCrestview: 1% · 11.7 miChurch Rock: 1% · 5.3 miGallup 66%Albuquerque 3%St. Michaels 3%Fort Defiance 2%Santa Fe 2%White Cliffs
White CliffsTop destinations (size = commuters)
70%Under 10 mi123 residents
4%10–24 mi7 residents
10%25–50 mi17 residents
16%Over 50 mi29 residents

About 16% 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.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in White Cliffs: questions

What is the median household income in White Cliffs?

$74,148 (±$28,551) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $64,059 across New Mexico and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in White Cliffs?

11.9%, against 17.8% across New Mexico and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from White Cliffs?

32 minutes each way on average, against 24 across New Mexico and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in White Cliffs work?

0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Gallup (66%, 5 mi), Albuquerque (3%, 118 mi), St. Michaels (3%, 26 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around White Cliffs without a car?

0% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from White Cliffs, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of White Cliffs

White Cliffs home →

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.