A job hub: Melville has 5.0 jobs per working resident, and 42,369 people come in to work
About one in ten stay in Melville for work; outside it, New York City is the main destination (28%, 29 miles). Employers in Melville report 43,094 jobs, and 8,667 of its residents work somewhere. The trip to work takes 33 minutes on average, 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
Melville and work: the main findings
Melville fills up on a workday
Melville has 43,094 jobs, 5.0 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 54,000 people are in town, more than double the 20,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Most jobs in Melville pay over $40,000 a year
80% of the jobs based in Melville pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), the top earnings band in the Census data. The jobs ↓
Melville and New York City trade workers both ways
New York City is the top workplace for Melville residents (28%) and also where the most people who work in Melville come from (15% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
The biggest group of Melville’s workers comes from New York City
6,606 of the people who work in Melville live in New York City, 29 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.
The daily commute in and out of Melville
On a workday 7,942 residents head out to work and 725 work right here.
About 54,000 people are in Melville on a workday afternoon, 175% more 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.
80% of the jobs in Melville pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Melville, 2013 → 2023: 43,684 → 43,094. 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 Melville’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip into Melville
Where Melville clocks in
28% of workers
17% of workers
12% 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.
Melville’s commute takes about 33 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Melville workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,708 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.
How far Melville’s workers travel
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 is work for 18% of Melville
The biggest share goes to Oyster Bay (12%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Melville workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melville | – | — | — | 33 min | $159,922 |
| Dix Hills | under 1% | — | — | 37 min | — |
| West Hills | under 1% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| South Huntington | under 1% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Babylon | 6% | A | A | 31 min | $128,108 |
| East Farmingdale | under 1% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Oyster Bay | 12% | A | A+ | 35 min | $160,126 |
| Plainview | under 1% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| Wheatley Heights | under 1% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| Old Bethpage | under 1% | — | — | 33 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Dix Hills, West Hills, South Huntington, East Farmingdale, Plainview, Wheatley Heights and Old Bethpage: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Melville’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 Melville: questions
What is the median household income in Melville?
$159,922 (±$15,686) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Melville?
4.5%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Melville?
33 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Melville work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (28%, 29 mi), Huntington (17%, 7 mi), Oyster Bay (12%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Melville without a car?
11% 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 Melville, from the people who make the trip.
More of Melville
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.