Work, pay and getting to work in Elma Center
Working residents average 28 minutes each way, where New York has 33 and the U.S. 26. Only 2% stay in Elma Center for work; outside it, Buffalo is the main destination (21%, 12 miles). 949 jobs are based in Elma Center; 1,286 of its residents have a job.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Elma Center and work: the main findings
Elma Center has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Elma Center went from 602 in 2014 to 949 in 2024, +58%. The jobs ↓
Most jobs in Elma Center pay over $40,000 a year
77% of the jobs based in Elma Center pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Elma Center are quick
The average trip to work takes 28 minutes, against 33 across New York. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical New York worker. Time on the road ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Goods, not services: 29% of the jobs in Elma Center
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Elma Center, 2014 → 2024: 602 → 949. 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 Elma Center’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 28 minutes each way for Elma Center’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Elma Center workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 955 commuters (the 15% 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.
A workday in Elma Center: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 1,265 residents head out to work, 21 work right here, and 928 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,500 people are in Elma Center on a workday afternoon, 12% fewer than live here.
0.74 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.
Out of Elma Center to work: where people go
Where Elma Center clocks in
21% 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.
How far it is to work from Elma Center
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.
The towns around Elma Center
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Elma Center workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elma Center | – | — | — | 28 min | $121,425 |
| Billington Heights | under 3% | — | — | 17 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Billington Heights: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Elma Center’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 Elma Center: questions
What is the median household income in Elma Center?
$121,425 (±$27,164) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Elma Center?
2.6%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Elma Center?
28 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Elma Center work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Buffalo (21%, 12 mi), Amherst (10%, 14 mi), Elma (9%, 1 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Elma Center without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Elma Center, from the people who make the trip.
More of Elma Center
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.