Unemployment in Webster (5.6%) is higher than in 69% of U.S. towns
For jobs and income Webster is better than 50% of U.S. towns (B−); for walkability it is more walkable than 65% of U.S. towns (B+). Only 5% work in Webster; the top destination outside it is Rochester (25%, 10 miles). The average commute takes 22 minutes each way, 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
Webster and work: the main findings
Commutes from Webster are quick
The average trip to work takes 22 minutes, against 33 across New York. That’s about 84 hours a year less on the road than the typical New York worker. Time on the road ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Webster than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Webster fell from 6,711 in 2013 to 3,833 in 2023, −43%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Webster makes and builds things
40% of the jobs based in Webster are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Webster residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 15%. The jobs ↓
Webster gains people on a workday
About 7,000 people are in Webster on a workday afternoon, 22% more than the 5,800 who live here: 3,700 come in to work and 2,500 head out. 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.
Income, poverty and work: Webster’s grade explained
Job access by car holds Webster’s grade up (ahead of 80% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Webster could be anywhere from C to A−.
About 22 minutes to work from Webster
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Webster workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,533 commuters (the 14% 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.
Webster makes things: 40% of its jobs are in goods
3,833 jobs are based in Webster.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Webster, 2013 → 2023: 6,711 → 3,833. 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 Webster’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily flow of workers through Webster
On a workday 2,457 residents head out to work, 123 work right here, and 3,710 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,000 people are in Webster on a workday afternoon, 22% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.49 per resident).
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 Webster’s working residents head each day
Where Webster clocks in
25% of workers
8% 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Webster
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.
Most trips from Webster start in a car
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 32.9% across New York.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,957 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 79% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 18% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 63% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 10.1% of Webster households have no vehicle (New York 29.2%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Webster’s commuters take a bus or train.
Webster next to U.S. towns of 4,000 to 7,800: 1,941st of 3,527 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Lawrence NY | 6,847 | $170K | 3.5% | 3.9% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | Irvington NY | 6,533 | $173K | 1.6% | 2.1% | 6% | A+ |
| 16 | Kings Point NY | 5,710 | $211K | 0.9% | 2.4% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,939 | Columbiana AL | 5,106 | $81K | 9.8% | 5.0% | 10% | B− |
| 1,940 | Hiawatha IA | 7,432 | $66K | 13.7% | 4.0% | 10% | B− |
| 1,941 | Webster NY | 5,761 | $70K | 10.7% | 5.6% | 5% | B− |
| 1,942 | Carolina Beach NC | 6,870 | $94K | 6.0% | 7.8% | 21% | B− |
| 1,943 | Upper Sandusky OH | 6,661 | $67K | 11.7% | 2.4% | 35% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,527 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Webster, the top three, the last and three more from New York.
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 Webster: questions
What is the median household income in Webster?
$70,495 (±$9,351) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Webster?
10.7%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Webster?
22 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Webster work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Rochester (25%, 10 mi), Webster (14%, 2 mi), Henrietta (8%, 16 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Webster walkable?
Webster is more walkable than 65% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 11.3 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Webster without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. 18% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Webster, from the people who make the trip.
More of Webster
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. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.