Photo: AppalachianCentrist · CC BY-SA 4.0At 6.8%, unemployment in Bristol is higher than in 81% of U.S. towns
The two grades for Bristol are C for jobs and income and B− for walkability. Measured by household income, Bristol is behind 77% of U.S. towns. About one in four stay in Bristol for work; outside it, Johnson City is the main destination (12%, 18 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Bristol: the figures worth knowing
A lot of Bristol workers cross into Virginia
27% of Bristol workers work outside Tennessee, most of them in Virginia, the Census survey finds. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Bristol are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 26 across Tennessee. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Tennessee worker. Time on the road ↓
Bristol draws workers from far and wide
The 14,387 jobs in Bristol are filled from a wide area. Bristol’s own residents hold 21% and the ten next-biggest home towns 22%; the other 57% 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 2023, 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 Bristol’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Bristol is better than 25% of U.S. towns, #124 of 177 in Tennessee. Job access by car holds Bristol’s grade up (ahead of 57% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Bristol could be anywhere from C− to C+.
The towns that employ Bristol’s residents
Where Bristol clocks in
12% of workers
11% of workers
9% 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.
Getting to work from Bristol takes about 21 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bristol workers work from home, vs 13% across Tennessee. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 11,271 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Tennessee: 87% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Bristol by day and by night
On a workday 8,403 residents head out to work, 2,992 work right here, and 11,395 people come in from elsewhere.
About 31,000 people are in Bristol on a workday afternoon, 11% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.26 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Jobs in Bristol: what the 14,387 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bristol, 2013 → 2023: 13,742 → 14,387. 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 Bristol’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Bristol’s workers travel
About 17% 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.
Bristol is a driving town
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Bristol is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns, #49 of 177 in Tennessee. Both inputs place Bristol 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 12,828 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 5.2% of Bristol households have no vehicle (Tennessee 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Bristol’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Bristol ranks: 1,244th of 1,409 U.S. towns of 20,000 to 38,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Upper Dublin Township PA | 27,258 | $168K | 3.2% | 1.9% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 69 | Farragut TN | 25,121 | $142K | 3.8% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 518 | Maryville TN | 32,442 | $82K | 6.7% | 3.0% | 26% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 866 | Oak Ridge TN | 35,395 | $72K | 12.2% | 3.8% | 35% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,242 | Sanford NC | 34,138 | $58K | 22.0% | 4.4% | 29% | C |
| 1,243 | Chillicothe OH | 21,815 | $54K | 17.4% | 4.9% | 29% | C |
| 1,244 | Bristol TN | 28,107 | $58K | 13.6% | 6.8% | 26% | C |
| 1,245 | Oak Ridge FL | 23,364 | $55K | 25.3% | 7.9% | 2% | C |
| 1,246 | Cudahy CA | 21,445 | $57K | 28.7% | 10.1% | 3% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 1,409 | Barstow CA | 24,804 | $53K | 23.1% | 11.9% | 17% | 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 Bristol, the top three, the last and three more from Tennessee.
Bristol and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Blountville (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bristol workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bristol | – | C | B− | 21 min | $58,162 |
| Walnut Hill | under 1% | B− | D− | 22 min | $51,742 |
| Blountville | 2% | B− | C− | 19 min | $54,754 |
| Bluff City | under 1% | C | C− | 26 min | $61,059 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Bristol’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 Bristol: questions
What is the median household income in Bristol?
$58,162 (±$6,856) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,595 across Tennessee and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bristol?
13.6%, against 13.8% across Tennessee and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bristol?
21 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Tennessee and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bristol work?
26% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Johnson City (12%, 18 mi), Bristol (11%, 5 mi), Kingsport (9%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Bristol walkable?
Bristol is more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.2 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bristol without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bristol, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bristol
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.