Photo: 46percent · Public domainMore people are out of work in Lebanon (5.8%) than in 72% of U.S. towns
Lebanon grades C− for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. Working from home is the commute for 6% of workers (Oregon 19%). About one in five work in Lebanon; the top destination outside it is Albany (15%, 11 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Lebanon, in brief
The four measures behind Lebanon’s grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lebanon is better than 22% of U.S. towns, #109 of 142 in Oregon. Job access by car holds Lebanon’s grade up (ahead of 43% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (17.8%, U.S. 12.5%).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lebanon could be anywhere from D to B−.
Where Lebanon goes to work
Where Lebanon clocks in
15% 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.
The workday shuffle in and out of Lebanon
On a workday 6,696 residents head out to work, 1,477 work right here, and 4,769 people come in from elsewhere.
About 18,000 people are in Lebanon on a workday afternoon, 10% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.76 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The kinds of work in Lebanon
6,246 jobs are based in Lebanon.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lebanon, 2014 → 2024: 5,605 → 6,246. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lebanon’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Lebanon: about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lebanon workers work from home, vs 19% across Oregon. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,229 commuters (the 6% who work from home are left out). Across Oregon: 80% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Short hops and long hauls from Lebanon
About 19% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Driving is how Lebanon gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lebanon is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns, #111 of 142 in Oregon. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 8.4% across Oregon.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 8,757 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 49% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 54% 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). 6.3% of Lebanon households have no vehicle (Oregon 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Lebanon’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Lebanon is 1,623rd among 1,860 U.S. towns of 14,000 to 27,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 398 | Sherwood OR | 20,535 | $110K | 4.3% | 3.5% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 442 | West Linn OR | 26,567 | $147K | 5.5% | 4.3% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 729 | Canby OR | 18,004 | $101K | 7.9% | 4.0% | 15% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,621 | Coolbaugh Township PA | 20,681 | $83K | 16.2% | 11.6% | 7% | C− |
| 1,622 | McKinleyville CA | 17,113 | $73K | 14.2% | 7.9% | 16% | C− |
| 1,623 | Lebanon OR | 20,267 | $63K | 17.8% | 5.8% | 18% | C− |
| 1,624 | Palmview TX | 15,878 | $44K | 30.8% | 5.1% | 5% | C− |
| 1,625 | Del City OK | 21,138 | $47K | 22.6% | 7.7% | 4% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,860 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 Lebanon, the top three, the last and three more from Oregon.
Lebanon and its neighbors
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lebanon workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lebanon | – | C− | B+ | 26 min | $63,176 |
| South Lebanon | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. South Lebanon: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Lebanon’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 2024, 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 Lebanon: questions
What is the median household income in Lebanon?
$63,176 (±$9,387) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,011 across Oregon and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lebanon?
17.8%, against 11.9% across Oregon and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lebanon?
26 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Oregon and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lebanon work?
18% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Albany (15%, 11 mi), Corvallis (10%, 18 mi), Salem (8%, 28 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Lebanon walkable?
Lebanon is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 10.4 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lebanon without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lebanon, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lebanon
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.