Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0Jobs and the daily commute in St. James
Working residents average 29 minutes each way (New York 33, U.S. 26). Only 6% work in St. James itself; outside it, New York City draws the most (21%, 44 miles). 4,373 jobs are based in St. James, against 6,638 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set St. James apart
St. James’ biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside St. James is New York City, 44 miles away as the crow flies. 21% of working residents (1,382) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
St. James has added jobs fast
Jobs based in St. James went from 3,011 in 2013 to 4,373 in 2023, +45%. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
How far St. James goes to work
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 St. James’ employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in St. James, 2013 → 2023: 3,011 → 4,373. 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 St. James’s own residents hold wherever they work.
St. James on a workday afternoon
On a workday 6,242 residents head out to work, 396 work right here, and 3,977 people come in from elsewhere.
About 11,000 people are in St. James on a workday afternoon, 17% fewer than live here.
0.66 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 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting out of St. James: the destinations
Where St. James clocks in
21% of workers
20% of workers
13% 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 long St. James spends getting to work: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of St. James workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,739 commuters (the 11% 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.
Bordering towns draw 12% of St. James’ workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | St. James workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. James | – | — | — | 29 min | $142,368 |
| Head of the Harbor | under 1% | A+ | B+ | 29 min | $250,000+ |
| Brookhaven | 12% | A− | A− | 32 min | $120,110 |
| Nesconset | under 1% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| Stony Brook | under 1% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Village of the Branch | under 1% | A+ | A− | 35 min | $173,958 |
| Lake Grove | under 1% | A− | A− | 39 min | $118,311 |
Same-state neighbors only. Nesconset and Stony Brook: Census-designated places inside larger towns, graded as part of them. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Brookhaven. Darker towns draw more of St. James’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 St. James: questions
What is the median household income in St. James?
$142,368 (±$22,380) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in St. James?
3.3%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from St. James?
29 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in St. James work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New York City (21%, 44 mi), Smithtown (20%, 3 mi), Islip (13%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around St. James without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from St. James, from the people who make the trip.
More of St. James
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.