Jobs and the daily commute in Westmere
Working residents average 18 minutes each way (New York 33, U.S. 26). There are 5,196 jobs in Westmere for 3,355 working residents. For 10% of workers, the job is at home, against 15% across New York.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Westmere: the gist
Commutes from Westmere are quick
The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 33 across New York. That’s about 115 hours a year less on the road than the typical New York worker. Time on the road ↓
Most Westmere residents work close to home
71% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. How far ↓
Westmere is where the jobs are
Westmere has 5,196 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
One in three of Westmere works in Albany
1,057 working residents, 32%, have their main job in Albany, 4.1 miles away across the town line. That’s 5 times as many as work in Westmere itself. 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.
About 18 minutes each way for Westmere’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Westmere workers work from home, vs 15% across New York. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,023 commuters (the 10% 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.
The commute from Westmere, by distance
About 16% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
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.
Westmere by day and by night
On a workday 3,151 residents head out to work, 204 work right here, and 4,992 people come in from elsewhere.
About 10,000 people are in Westmere on a workday afternoon, 22% more than live here.
1.5 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
The towns that send workers to Westmere
Where Westmere clocks in
32% of workers
16% of workers
11% 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.
In Westmere, services account for most jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Westmere, 2013 → 2023: 4,215 → 5,196. 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 Westmere’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Bordering towns draw 32% of Westmere’s workers
Jobs & commute next door
The biggest share goes to Albany. Darker towns draw more of Westmere’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 Westmere: questions
What is the median household income in Westmere?
$88,378 (±$11,148) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $85,974 across New York and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Westmere?
7.2%, against 14.0% across New York and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Westmere?
18 minutes each way on average, against 33 across New York and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Westmere work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Albany (32%, 4 mi), Colonie (16%, 6 mi), Guilderland (11%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Westmere without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 14% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Westmere, from the people who make the trip.
More of Westmere
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.