Most of Cleveland commutes out: there are 0.1 jobs for every working resident
Employers in Cleveland report 21 jobs; 285 of its residents have a job. Hardly any work in Cleveland; the top destination outside it is Syracuse (17%, 19 miles). Working residents average 39 minutes each way; New York averages 33, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Cleveland apart
Cleveland is a place people come home to
There are 21 jobs based in Cleveland, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Cleveland has about 470 people in it, 36% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Cleveland workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 39 minutes each way, against 33 across New York. Over a year that’s about 299 hours of commuting, 46 more than the state’s typical 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; with 285 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How a workday changes Cleveland
On a workday 284 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 20 people come in from elsewhere.
About 470 people are in Cleveland on a workday afternoon, 36% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Time on the road from Cleveland: about 39 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Cleveland workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 274 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 towns that employ Cleveland’s residents
Where Cleveland clocks in
17% of workers
10% 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.
What Cleveland’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Cleveland, 2013 → 2023: 51 → 21. 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 Cleveland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Cleveland goes to work
About 17% 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.
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 Cleveland: questions
What is the median household income in Cleveland?
$77,857 (±$17,466) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Cleveland?
12.4%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Cleveland?
39 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 Cleveland work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Syracuse (17%, 19 mi), DeWitt (11%, 16 mi), Cicero (10%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Cleveland without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Cleveland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Cleveland
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.