Unemployment in Tri-City (8.8%) is higher than in 91% of U.S. towns
Only 6% stay in Tri-City for work; outside it, Roseburg is the main destination (20%, 16 miles). For jobs and income Tri-City is better than 4% of U.S. towns (D−); for walkability it is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (B+). Household incomes here are lower than in 81% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Tri-City
Stores, warehouses and trucking
45% of the jobs in Tri-City are in trade, transport and utilities, against 22% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
Tri-City is a place people come home to
There are 473 jobs based in Tri-City, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Tri-City has about 3,100 people in it, 26% fewer than live here. 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.
The four measures behind Tri-City’s grade
All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Tri-City’s grade.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Tri-City could be anywhere from D− to C.
The 473 jobs based in Tri-City
473 jobs are based in Tri-City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Tri-City, 2013 → 2023: 367 → 473. 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 Tri-City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The workday shuffle in and out of Tri-City
On a workday 1,480 residents head out to work, 100 work right here, and 373 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,100 people are in Tri-City on a workday afternoon, 26% fewer than live here.
0.30 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.
Where the trip to work from Tri-City ends
Where Tri-City clocks in
20% of workers
4% 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.
About 22 minutes to work from Tri-City
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Tri-City workers work from home, vs 19% across Oregon. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,137 commuters (the 14% 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.
Miles to work from Tri-City
About 23% 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.
Tri-City is a driving town
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.4% 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 1,317 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, <1% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 51% 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). 2.9% of Tri-City households have no vehicle (Oregon 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Tri-City’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 3,000 to 5,700, and where Tri-City sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 226 | Hubbard OR | 3,399 | $102K | 3.6% | 1.6% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 320 | Beavercreek OR | 4,894 | $135K | 4.9% | 2.4% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 361 | Millersburg OR | 3,583 | $125K | 5.1% | 1.5% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 3,822 | Carthage MS | 4,864 | $42K | 29.7% | 7.8% | 19% | D− |
| 3,823 | Lee Acres NM | 4,272 | $45K | 30.0% | 15.2% | 6% | D− |
| 3,824 | Tri-City OR | 4,234 | $55K | 27.5% | 8.8% | 6% | D− |
| 3,825 | Elba AL | 3,408 | $45K | 23.8% | 8.3% | 17% | D− |
| 3,826 | Nowata OK | 3,584 | $48K | 25.5% | 7.8% | 26% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,962 | 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 Tri-City, the top three, the last and three more from Oregon.
Tri-City and the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Tri-City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tri-City | – | D− | B+ | 22 min | $55,026 |
| Myrtle Creek | 4% | D | A | 20 min | $55,921 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Myrtle Creek. Darker towns draw more of Tri-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 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 Tri-City: questions
What is the median household income in Tri-City?
$55,026 (±$12,663) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,011 across Oregon and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Tri-City?
27.5%, against 11.9% across Oregon and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Tri-City?
22 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Oregon and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Tri-City work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Roseburg (20%, 16 mi), Myrtle Creek (4%, 3 mi), Eugene (4%, 74 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Tri-City walkable?
Tri-City is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 10.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Tri-City without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. <1% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Tri-City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Tri-City
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.