Jobs and the daily commute in Imperial
Only 2% stay in Imperial for work; outside it, Midland is the main destination (10%, 62 miles). Working residents average 30 minutes each way; Texas averages 27, the U.S. 26. Imperial has 65 jobs; 87 of its residents have a job.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
In and out of Imperial on a workday
On a workday 85 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 63 people come in from elsewhere.
About 170 people are in Imperial on a workday afternoon, 12% fewer than live here.
0.75 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 Imperial’s working residents head each day
Where Imperial clocks in
10% of workers
10% 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.
Imperial works in goods: 51% of its jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Imperial, 2013 → 2023: 6 → 65. 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 Imperial’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 30 minutes each way, longer than most of Texas
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Imperial workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 87 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Texas: 83% 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.
Half of Imperial commutes less than 57 miles
About 67% 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.
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 Imperial: questions
What is the median household income in Imperial?
$71,333 (±$65,400) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Imperial?
13.8%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Imperial?
30 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Imperial work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Midland (10%, 62 mi), Odessa (10%, 47 mi), Iraan (9%, 53 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Imperial 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 Imperial, from the people who make the trip.
More of Imperial
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.