Reno draws more than half of Golden Valley’s working residents
The two grades for Golden Valley are B+ for jobs and income and C− for walkability. Hardly any stay in Golden Valley for work; outside it, Reno is the main destination (59%, 5 miles). Household incomes here are higher than in 71% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Golden Valley, in brief
More than half of Golden Valley works in Reno
493 working residents, 59%, have their main job in Reno, 5 miles away across the town line. That’s far more as work in Golden Valley itself. The commute map ↓
Golden Valley is a place people come home to
There are 114 jobs based in Golden Valley, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Golden Valley has about 420 people in it, 63% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Most Golden Valley residents work close to home
67% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 836 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The figures behind Golden Valley’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty and job access, Golden Valley is better than 66% of U.S. towns. Household income holds Golden Valley’s grade up ($93,456, U.S. $80,734); the poverty rate pulls it down (10.2%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on job access by car.
Unemployment (12.5%) is left out: Golden Valley’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Golden Valley could be anywhere from C− to A+.
Where Golden Valley goes to work
Where Golden Valley clocks in
59% of workers
15% of workers
3% 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 workday shuffle in and out of Golden Valley
On a workday 834 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 112 people come in from elsewhere.
About 420 people are in Golden Valley on a workday afternoon, 63% fewer than live here.
0.14 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 2024, primary jobs.
How many miles Golden Valley commutes
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Goods jobs make up 39% of work in Golden Valley
114 jobs are based in Golden Valley.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Golden Valley, 2014 → 2024: 83 → 114. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Golden Valley’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Golden Valley: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Golden Valley workers work from home, vs 12% across Nevada. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 332 commuters (the 9% who work from home are left out). Across Nevada: 80% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
In Golden Valley, the car does most of the work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Golden Valley is more walkable than 23% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 4.6% across Nevada.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 364 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 2.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 68% 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). 0.0% of Golden Valley households have no vehicle (Nevada 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Golden Valley’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Golden Valley is 736th of 3,771 U.S. towns of 800 to 1,500
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | 1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 68 | Mogul NV | 1,050 | $145K | 2.3% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 366 | Verdi NV | 1,012 | $81K | 3.0% | 6.4% | 1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 594 | Osino NV | 1,341 | $93K | 1.0% | 0.0% | 1% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 734 | Turtle Lake Township MN | 1,258 | $120K | 5.4% | 0.5% | 1% | B+ |
| 735 | Parkland WI | 1,228 | $95K | 7.7% | 2.5% | <1% | B+ |
| 736 | Golden Valley NV | 1,139 | $93K | 10.2% | 12.5% | <1% | B+ |
| 737 | Shafer MN | 1,212 | $99K | 7.5% | 2.3% | 1% | B+ |
| 738 | Saltcreek Township IN | 1,158 | $111K | 6.5% | 0.9% | 1% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,771 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 1% | 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 Golden Valley, the top three, the last and three more from Nevada.
61% of Golden Valley works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Golden Valley workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Valley | – | B+ | C− | 29 min | $93,456 |
| Lemmon Valley | 1% | C+ | C+ | 30 min | $76,029 |
| Sun Valley | 1% | C+ | B+ | 26 min | $77,446 |
| Reno | 59% | B− | A | 20 min | $80,760 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Reno. Darker towns draw more of Golden Valley’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 2024, 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 Golden Valley: questions
What is the median household income in Golden Valley?
$93,456 (±$44,064) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,260 across Nevada and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Golden Valley?
10.2%, against 12.4% across Nevada and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Golden Valley?
29 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Nevada and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Golden Valley work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Reno (59%, 5 mi), Sparks (15%, 6 mi), Carson City (3%, 32 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Golden Valley walkable?
Golden Valley is more walkable than 23% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 7.0 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Golden Valley without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Golden Valley, from the people who make the trip.
More of Golden Valley
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.