Photo: Pete Forsyth · CC BY 4.0Oregon City’s household incomes are higher than in 75% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 9.1 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 19.6 in Portland. Below the poverty line: 6.8% of residents; Oregon State has 11.9%. Oregon City grades A− for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Oregon City: the gist
Oregon City trades workers with the towns around it
Oregon City has about as many jobs (15,979) as working residents (17,191), but they are mostly different people: 15,056 residents leave for work each day while 13,844 people come in. Only 13% of the jobs in Oregon City are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Oregon City and Portland trade workers both ways
Portland is the top workplace for Oregon City residents (28%) and also where the most people who work in Oregon City come from (15% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Oregon City draws workers from far and wide
The 15,979 jobs in Oregon City are filled from a wide area. Oregon City’s own residents hold 13% and the ten next-biggest home towns 32%; the other 55% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
The figures behind Oregon City’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Oregon City is better than 76% of U.S. towns, #24 of 142 in Oregon. Job access by car holds Oregon City’s grade up (ahead of 80% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Oregon City could be anywhere from B to A.
Oregon City by day and by night
On a workday 15,056 residents head out to work, 2,135 work right here, and 13,844 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.93 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.
28% of working residents work in Portland
Where Oregon City clocks in
4% of workers
3% 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.
67% of the jobs in Oregon City pay over $3,333 a month
15,979 jobs are based in Oregon City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Oregon City, 2014 → 2024: 12,756 → 15,979. 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 Oregon City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Getting to work from Oregon City takes about 27 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Oregon City workers work from home, vs 19% across Oregon State. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 16,175 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Oregon State: 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.
How far Oregon City’s workers travel
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.
Oregon City is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Oregon City is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns, #52 of 142 in Oregon. Both inputs place Oregon City near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 19,074 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 51% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 8% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 9.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 92% 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). 5.8% of Oregon City households have no vehicle (Oregon State 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Oregon City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 27,000 to 52,000, Oregon City ranks 443rd of 1,113 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| 2 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 3 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 91 | Lake Oswego OR | 39,722 | $142K | 3.4% | 3.4% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 154 | Bethany OR | 33,106 | $168K | 4.0% | 4.0% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 422 | Happy Valley OR | 28,916 | $122K | 7.7% | 4.8% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 441 | Valrico FL | 40,239 | $105K | 9.9% | 3.4% | 3% | A− |
| 442 | Culver City CA | 39,452 | $117K | 7.5% | 6.6% | 10% | A− |
| 443 | Oregon City OR | 38,175 | $98K | 6.8% | 4.4% | 12% | A− |
| 444 | Converse TX | 32,481 | $94K | 11.6% | 3.2% | 2% | A− |
| 445 | Ossining NY | 39,964 | $126K | 8.8% | 5.5% | 11% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,113 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 25% | 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 Oregon City, the top three, the last and three more from Oregon State.
Work in the towns next to Oregon City
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Oregon City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon City | – | A− | A | 27 min | $97,829 |
| Gladstone | under 3% | B | A | 23 min | $91,250 |
| West Linn | under 3% | A | A− | 24 min | $146,507 |
| Beavercreek | under 3% | A | C+ | 32 min | $135,032 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Oregon City’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 Oregon City: questions
What is the median household income in Oregon City?
$97,829 (±$4,613) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,011 across Oregon State and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Oregon City?
6.8%, against 11.9% across Oregon State and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Oregon City?
27 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Oregon State and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Oregon City work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Portland (28%, 14 mi), Tigard (4%, 11 mi), Tualatin (3%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Oregon City walkable?
Oregon City is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.1 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Oregon City without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 8% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Oregon City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Oregon City
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.