Selden has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.4 for each
Selden has 4,043 jobs for 10,582 working residents. Only 4% work in Selden; the top destination outside it is Brookhaven (31%, 5 miles). Commuters spend 30 minutes getting to work on average; the New York average is 33, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Selden at work: what stands out
Selden’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Selden is New York City, 49 miles away as the crow flies. 18% of working residents (1,858) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Selden
65% of Selden residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 41% of the jobs based in Selden pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 96% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Selden empties out on a workday
About 15,000 people are in Selden on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than the 22,000 who live here: 10,000 head out to work and 3,600 come in. Day and night ↓
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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Selden
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.
The kinds of work in Selden
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Selden, 2013 → 2023: 3,817 → 4,043. 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 Selden’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Selden
On a workday 10,181 residents head out to work, 401 work right here, and 3,642 people come in from elsewhere.
About 15,000 people are in Selden on a workday afternoon, 30% 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.
Where Selden goes to work
Where Selden clocks in
31% of workers
18% of workers
15% 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.
About 30 minutes each way for Selden’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Selden workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9,777 commuters (the 9% 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 Selden compares with the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Selden workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selden | – | — | — | 30 min | $108,952 |
| Centereach | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Farmingville | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Coram | under 2% | — | — | 34 min | — |
| Terryville | under 2% | — | — | 31 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Centereach, Farmingville, Coram and Terryville: 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 Selden’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 Selden: questions
What is the median household income in Selden?
$108,952 (±$11,032) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Selden?
6.7%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Selden?
30 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Selden work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Brookhaven (31%, 5 mi), New York City (18%, 49 mi), Islip (15%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Selden without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Selden, from the people who make the trip.
More of Selden
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.