Earning a living in Arlington
Commuters spend 36 minutes getting to work on average; New York averages 33, the U.S. 26. Working from home is the commute for 26% of workers (New York 15%). Only 4% work in Arlington itself; outside it, Poughkeepsie draws the most (25%, 2 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Arlington apart on work
Arlington’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Arlington is New York City, 72 miles away as the crow flies. 15% of working residents (212) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Home offices are common in Arlington
26% of Arlington workers work from home, against 15% across New York. Time on the road ↓
Nearly all the work in Arlington is services
87% of the jobs based here are in services, such as health care, schools and offices. Only 2% are in factories, building or farms. 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Arlington
About 26% 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.
About 36 minutes each way, longer than most of New York
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Arlington workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 922 commuters (the 26% who work from home are left out). Across New York: 57% drive alone, 25% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
1,790 jobs are based in Arlington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Arlington, 2013 → 2023: 1,751 → 1,790. 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 Arlington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Arlington
On a workday 1,368 residents head out to work, 57 work right here, and 1,733 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,200 people are in Arlington on a workday afternoon, 13% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.26 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 people from Arlington work
Where Arlington clocks in
25% of workers
15% of workers
11% 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.
Next door is work for 11% of Arlington
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Arlington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arlington | – | — | — | 36 min | $72,364 |
| Vassar College | under 2% | — | — | 12 min | — |
| Poughkeepsie | 11% | C− | A | 24 min | $60,741 |
Same-state neighbors only. Vassar College: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Poughkeepsie. Darker towns draw more of Arlington’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 Arlington: questions
What is the median household income in Arlington?
$72,364 (±$9,449) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Arlington?
9.0%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Arlington?
36 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Arlington work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Poughkeepsie (25%, 2 mi), New York City (15%, 72 mi), Poughkeepsie (11%, 1 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Arlington without a car?
9% of commuters take transit and 26% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Arlington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Arlington
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.