Photo: VitaleBaby at en.wikipedia · Public domainAt 10.8%, unemployment in California is higher than in 96% of U.S. towns
About one in ten work in California; the top destination outside it is Pittsburgh (6%, 26 miles). The two grades for California are D for jobs and income and A for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 89% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in California: the gist
California trades workers with the towns around it
California has about as many jobs (1,861) as working residents (1,617), but they are mostly different people: 1,434 residents leave for work each day while 1,678 people come in. Only 10% of the jobs in California are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
The jobs in California pay better than its residents’ jobs
75% of the jobs based in California pay over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year), against 60% of the jobs California residents hold. 90% of the jobs here are held by people who live outside California. The jobs ↓
Commutes from California are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 26 across Pennsylvania. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Pennsylvania worker. Time on the road ↓
Fewer jobs are based in California than ten years ago
Jobs counted in California fell from 2,561 in 2014 to 1,861 in 2024, −27%. 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 ↓
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.
Why California gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, California is better than 11% of U.S. towns, #1,013 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Job access by car holds California’s grade up (ahead of 62% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, California could be anywhere from D to C−.
California by day and by night
On a workday 1,434 residents head out to work, 183 work right here, and 1,678 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 (1.15 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.
32% of the jobs in California make or build things
1,861 jobs are based in California.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in California, 2014 → 2024: 2,561 → 1,861. 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 California’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 21 minutes to work from California
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of California workers work from home, vs 16% across Pennsylvania. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,802 commuters (the 14% who work from home are left out). Across Pennsylvania: 81% drive alone, 4% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Where California’s working residents head each day
Where California clocks in
6% of workers
3% 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.
Half of California commutes less than 20 miles
About 15% 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.
California is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, California is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns, #183 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 20.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 8.6% across Pennsylvania, on an EPA index of 8.3.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,107 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 17.9% of California households have no vehicle (Pennsylvania 10.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of California’s commuters take a bus or train.
Where California sits among U.S. towns of 3,200 to 6,200
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | Wallace Township PA | 3,759 | $183K | 1.9% | 0.0% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 30 | Edgmont Township PA | 4,706 | $137K | 2.4% | 1.1% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 68 | Pocopson Township PA | 4,480 | $230K | 1.3% | 2.2% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,567 | Gamewell NC | 3,713 | $47K | 21.5% | 5.7% | 2% | D |
| 3,568 | Perkins OK | 3,271 | $35K | 32.0% | 4.2% | 14% | D |
| 3,569 | California PA | 4,615 | $49K | 28.9% | 10.8% | 11% | D |
| 3,570 | Gunnison UT | 3,693 | $71K | 20.9% | 4.1% | 27% | D |
| 3,571 | Granger WA | 3,831 | $66K | 23.3% | 15.8% | 6% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 3,938 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 19% | 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 California, the top three, the last and three more from Pennsylvania.
How California compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Centerville (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | California workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | – | D | A | 21 min | $48,606 |
| West Pike Run Township | under 2% | B | D | 31 min | $76,563 |
| West Brownsville | under 2% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Centerville | 2% | A− | D | 38 min | $71,250 |
| Coal Center | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Jefferson Township | under 2% | B− | D− | 34 min | $74,844 |
| Newell | under 2% | — | — | 23 min | — |
| Long Branch | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Fallowfield Township | under 2% | C+ | D | 30 min | $66,802 |
| Elco | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. West Brownsville: not graded. Coal Center, Newell, Long Branch and Elco: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of California’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 California: questions
What is the median household income in California?
$48,606 (±$9,502) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,971 across Pennsylvania and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in California?
28.9%, against 11.7% across Pennsylvania and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from California?
21 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Pennsylvania and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in California work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Pittsburgh (6%, 26 mi), Washington (3%, 19 mi), North Strabane Township (3%, 17 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is California walkable?
California is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 21% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around California without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 18% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from California, from the people who make the trip.
More of California
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.