Photo: Alexis Sprague · CC BY-SA 3.0More than half of Ooltewah’s working residents commute to Chattanooga
Employers in Ooltewah report 71 jobs for 264 working residents. Hardly any stay in Ooltewah for work; outside it, Chattanooga is the main destination (58%, 11 miles). A typical one-way commute lasts 18 minutes; Tennessee averages 26, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Ooltewah and work: the main findings
More than half of Ooltewah works in Chattanooga
153 working residents, 58%, have their main job in Chattanooga, 11 miles away. That’s far more as work in Ooltewah itself. The commute map ↓
Ooltewah is a place people come home to
There are 71 jobs based in Ooltewah, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Ooltewah has about 390 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Ooltewah are quick
The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 26 across Tennessee. That’s about 61 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 264 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where Ooltewah’s working residents head each day
Where Ooltewah clocks in
58% 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.
Who leaves Ooltewah for work, and who comes in
On a workday 263 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 70 people come in from elsewhere.
About 390 people are in Ooltewah on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
0.27 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.
The daily trip from Ooltewah: about 18 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Ooltewah workers work from home, vs 13% across Tennessee. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 236 commuters (the 16% 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 Ooltewah, 2013 → 2023: 70 → 71. 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 Ooltewah’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Near or far: the trip to work from Ooltewah
About 21% 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.
Ooltewah and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Collegedale (2%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Ooltewah workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ooltewah | – | — | — | 18 min | $62,292 |
| Collegedale | 2% | A− | B+ | 22 min | $70,246 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Ooltewah’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 Ooltewah: questions
What is the median household income in Ooltewah?
$62,292 (±$37,458) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,595 across Tennessee and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Ooltewah?
3.1%, against 13.8% across Tennessee and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Ooltewah?
18 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Tennessee and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Ooltewah work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chattanooga (58%, 11 mi), Nashville (6%, 123 mi), Cleveland (4%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Ooltewah 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 Ooltewah, from the people who make the trip.
More of Ooltewah
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.