Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0Fewer people are out of work in Karnes City (1.8%) than in 87% of U.S. towns
Home is the office for <1% of workers (Texas 14%). Karnes City grades C− for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 81% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Karnes City
Karnes City’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Karnes City is San Antonio, 55 miles away as the crow flies. 12% of working residents (147) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
A big share show a job far from home
53% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Commutes from Karnes City are quick
The average trip to work takes 19 minutes, against 27 across Texas. That’s about 61 hours a year less on the road than the typical Texas worker. Time on the road ↓
Few Karnes City workers work from home
Only 0% of workers work from home, against 14% across Texas. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
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.
The figures behind Karnes City’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Karnes City is better than 23% of U.S. towns, #491 of 642 in Texas. Unemployment holds Karnes City’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (29.6%, U.S. 12.5%).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Karnes City could be anywhere from D to B−.
The commute from Karnes City, by distance
About 53% 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.
The trip to work from Karnes City: about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Karnes City workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,397 commuters (the <1% 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.
Who commutes out of Karnes City, and who commutes in
On a workday 1,131 residents head out to work, 105 work right here, and 728 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,100 people are in Karnes City on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
0.67 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 2024, primary jobs.
12% of working residents work in San Antonio
Where Karnes City clocks in
12% of workers
9% of workers
5% 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 kinds of work in Karnes City
833 jobs are based in Karnes City.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Karnes City, 2014 → 2024: 747 → 833. 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 Karnes City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Karnes City is a driving town
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Karnes City is more walkable than 74% of U.S. towns, #78 of 642 in Texas. Both inputs place Karnes City 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 1,402 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). 10.7% of Karnes City households have no vehicle (Texas 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Karnes City’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Karnes City is 3,402nd among 4,355 U.S. towns of 2,500 to 4,800
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5 | Taylor Lake Village TX | 3,774 | $166K | 0.0% | 0.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Hollywood Park TX | 3,140 | $138K | 2.6% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 19 | Talty TX | 3,299 | $155K | 1.9% | 1.3% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,400 | Ringgold GA | 3,391 | $43K | 14.9% | 4.8% | 10% | C− |
| 3,401 | Cotulla TX | 3,583 | $70K | 26.7% | 3.0% | 30% | C− |
| 3,402 | Karnes City TX | 3,540 | $55K | 29.6% | 1.8% | 8% | C− |
| 3,403 | Marceline Township MO | 2,589 | $75K | 17.9% | 4.5% | 33% | C− |
| 3,404 | Westfall Township PA | 3,423 | $72K | 8.2% | 15.0% | 9% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,355 | 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 Karnes City, the top three, the last and three more from Texas.
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 Karnes City: questions
What is the median household income in Karnes City?
$55,354 (±$25,383) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Karnes City?
29.6%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Karnes City?
19 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. <1% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Karnes City work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Antonio (12%, 55 mi), Kenedy (9%, 6 mi), Austin (5%, 98 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Karnes City walkable?
Karnes City is more walkable than 74% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.8 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Karnes City without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 11% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Karnes City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Karnes City
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.