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Cranberry Lake, Black Duck Hole, Wanakena, NYPhoto: Mwanner · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Clifton

Clifton has 0.2 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out

10% of workers work from home, where New York as a whole has 15%. 44 jobs are based in Clifton, against 183 working residents. A typical one-way commute lasts 34 minutes, where New York has 33 and the U.S. 26.

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

Day and night

Clifton on a workday afternoon

On a workday 177 residents head out to work, 6 work right here, and 38 people come in from elsewhere.

177live here, work elsewhere
6live and work here
38work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night670
Workday530
670live here− 180head out to work+ 38come in to work= 530on a workday

About 530 people are in Clifton on a workday afternoon, 21% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.24jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

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

17% of working residents work in Fine

Syracuse: 5 residents work here (3%)Albany: 5 residents work here (3%)Tupper Lake: 6 residents work here (3%)CroghanGouverneur: 8 residents work here (4%)ColtonPotsdam: 10 residents work here (5%)RussellCanton: 15 residents work here (8%)ClareCliftonEdwardsFowler: 10 residents work here (5%)Fine: 31 residents work here (17%)Malone: 6 residents work here (3%)ParishvilleCranberry LakeFineCantonPotsdamFowlerGouverneurTupper LakeClifton
1
Fine10.2 mi away
17%31
2
Canton30.4 mi away
8%15
3
Potsdam33.6 mi away
5%10
4
Fowler26.1 mi away
5%10
5
Gouverneur31.7 mi away
4%8
6
Tupper Lake20.9 mi away
3%6
7
Clifton (in town)right here
3%6
8
Malone49.5 mi away
3%6
9
Syracuse101.9 mi away
3%5
10
Albany119.3 mi away
3%5
Everywhere elseother towns and states
44%81
The top trips

Where Clifton clocks in

Lines 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 jobs

What Clifton’s employers do

Jobs based in CliftonJobs Clifton residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms2%20%
Trade, transport & utilities34%19%
Services: health, schools, offices64%61%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less23%17%
$1,251–$3,333 a month32%30%
Over $3,333 a month45%53%

Who does it

29 or younger16%27%
30 to 5457%51%
55 and older27%22%
−46%

Jobs based in Clifton, 2013 → 2023: 82 → 44. 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 Clifton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

How long Clifton spends getting to work: about 34 minutes

A year of commuting
258 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Clifton34 min
New York33 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
10%

of Clifton workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.

About 1 in 10
How Clifton gets to work
78%Drive alone
7%Carpool
1%Transit
15%Walk

Share of the 255 commuters (the 10% 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.

How far

The distance from Clifton to work

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miFine: 17% · 10.2 miCanton: 8% · 30.4 miPotsdam: 5% · 33.6 miFowler: 5% · 26.1 miGouverneur: 4% · 31.7 miTupper Lake: 3% · 20.9 miMalone: 3% · 49.5 miSyracuse: 3% · 101.9 miAlbany: 3% · 119.3 miFine 17%Canton 8%Potsdam 5%Fowler 5%Gouverneur 4%Clifton
CliftonTop destinations (size = commuters)
11%Under 10 mi21 residents
19%10–24 mi34 residents
34%25–50 mi62 residents
36%Over 50 mi66 residents

About 36% 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.

Next door

Next door is work for 17% of Clifton

10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%

Average commute minutes, one way

Fine23 min
Clare23 min
Colton28 min
Clifton34 min

Jobs & commute next door

TownClifton workers thereJobs & incomeWalkabilityCommuteHousehold income
Clifton–——34 min$47,228
Fine17%DB−23 min$59,861
Coltonunder 3%C−C28 min$69,156
Clareunder 3%——23 min—

Same-state neighbors only. Clare: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.

The biggest share goes to Fine. Darker towns draw more of Clifton’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

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 Clifton: questions

What is the median household income in Clifton?

$47,228 (±$9,866) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Clifton?

14.4%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Clifton?

34 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Clifton work?

3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Fine (17%, 10 mi), Canton (8%, 30 mi), Potsdam (5%, 34 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Clifton without a car?

1% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Clifton, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Clifton

Clifton 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.