Photo: Walker, L. E., 1826-1916 -- Publisher · Public domainAt 6.4%, unemployment in Chautauqua is higher than in 78% of U.S. towns
Commuters spend 22 minutes getting to work on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. The two grades for Chautauqua are C− for jobs and income and B for walkability. About one in four stay in Chautauqua for work; outside it, Jamestown is the main destination (9%, 17 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Chautauqua at work: what stands out
Commutes from Chautauqua are quick
The average trip to work takes 22 minutes, against 33 across New York. That’s about 84 hours a year less on the road than the typical New York worker. Time on the road ↓
Chautauqua is where the jobs are
Chautauqua has 2,477 jobs, 1.7 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Nearly all the work in Chautauqua is services
90% of the jobs based here are in services, such as health care, schools and offices. Only 6% are in factories, building or farms. The jobs ↓
The biggest group of Chautauqua’s workers comes from Jamestown
274 of the people who work in Chautauqua live in Jamestown, 17 miles away, more than from any other town. 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.
Income, poverty and work: Chautauqua’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Chautauqua is better than 16% of U.S. towns, #682 of 758 in New York. Household income holds Chautauqua’s grade up ($68,795, U.S. $80,734); the poverty rate pulls it down (18.3%, U.S. 12.5%).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Chautauqua could be anywhere from D− to B−.
About 22 minutes to work from Chautauqua
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Chautauqua workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,282 commuters (the 13% 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.
The daily commute in and out of Chautauqua
On a workday 1,059 residents head out to work, 376 work right here, and 2,101 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,000 people are in Chautauqua on a workday afternoon, 26% more than live here.
1.7 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
2,477 jobs are based in Chautauqua.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Chautauqua, 2013 → 2023: 2,509 → 2,477. 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 Chautauqua’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Where the people who work in Chautauqua live
Where Chautauqua clocks in
9% of workers
5% of workers
4% 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.
Where in the region Chautauqua works
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.
Chautauqua is a driving town
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Chautauqua is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns, #470 of 758 in New York. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 4.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 32.9% across New York, on an EPA index of 6.1.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,476 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). 11.5% of Chautauqua households have no vehicle (New York 29.2%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Chautauqua’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 4,177 U.S. towns of 2,800 to 5,400, Chautauqua comes 3,554th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Lloyd Harbor NY | 3,587 | $250K | 2.1% | 0.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 52 | Great Neck Estates NY | 3,139 | $238K | 5.7% | 1.7% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 109 | Pound Ridge NY | 5,057 | $250K | 4.5% | 2.0% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,552 | Conewango Township PA | 3,310 | $57K | 18.1% | 5.5% | 13% | C− |
| 3,553 | Washington Township IN | 3,380 | $49K | 10.9% | 8.6% | 6% | C− |
| 3,554 | Chautauqua NY | 3,995 | $69K | 18.3% | 6.4% | 26% | C− |
| 3,555 | Empire CA | 3,429 | $53K | 22.3% | 13.0% | 1% | C− |
| 3,556 | North Shore CA | 3,515 | $52K | 7.6% | 11.3% | 3% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,177 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Chautauqua, the top three, the last and three more from New York.
The towns around Chautauqua
The biggest share goes to Westfield (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Chautauqua workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chautauqua | – | C− | B | 22 min | $68,795 |
| Westfield | 3% | D | B+ | 15 min | $50,921 |
| Mayville | under 3% | C− | A− | 19 min | $68,611 |
| Stockton | under 3% | B− | B | 23 min | $73,500 |
| North Harmony | under 3% | C+ | B | 20 min | $71,250 |
| Ellery | under 3% | C+ | B− | 23 min | $86,833 |
| Sherman | under 3% | D | B+ | 26 min | $51,953 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Chautauqua’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 Chautauqua: questions
What is the median household income in Chautauqua?
$68,795 (±$17,610) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Chautauqua?
18.3%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Chautauqua?
22 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Chautauqua work?
26% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Jamestown (9%, 17 mi), Ellicott (5%, 16 mi), Dunkirk (4%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Chautauqua walkable?
Chautauqua is more walkable than 56% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 6.1 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Chautauqua without a car?
<1% 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 Chautauqua, from the people who make the trip.
More of Chautauqua
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.