Photo: Harrison Keely · CC BY 4.0McDonald has 0.2 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
McDonald has 43 jobs for 268 working residents. Hardly any work in McDonald itself; outside it, Cleveland draws the most (34%, 8 miles). 4% of workers have no commute at all (Tennessee 13%).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
McDonald and work: the main findings
McDonald and Cleveland trade workers both ways
Cleveland is the top workplace for McDonald residents (34%) and also where the most people who work in McDonald come from (23% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
McDonald is a place people come home to
There are 43 jobs based in McDonald, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday McDonald has about 490 people in it, 32% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from McDonald 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 ↓
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; with 268 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where the trip to work from McDonald ends
Where McDonald clocks in
34% of workers
25% 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 daily commute in and out of McDonald
On a workday 268 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 43 people come in from elsewhere.
About 490 people are in McDonald on a workday afternoon, 32% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
How long McDonald spends getting to work: 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 McDonald workers work from home, vs 13% across Tennessee. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 399 commuters (the 4% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in McDonald, 2013 → 2023: 29 → 43. 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 McDonald’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from McDonald
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.
The towns around McDonald
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | McDonald workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald | – | — | — | 21 min | $95,698 |
| South Cleveland | under 2% | C | C | 22 min | $66,601 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of McDonald’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 McDonald: questions
What is the median household income in McDonald?
$95,698 (±$39,500) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,595 across Tennessee and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in McDonald?
4.9%, against 13.8% across Tennessee and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from McDonald?
21 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Tennessee and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in McDonald work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Cleveland (34%, 8 mi), Chattanooga (25%, 15 mi), Nashville (4%, 125 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around McDonald without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from McDonald, from the people who make the trip.
More of McDonald
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.