Photo: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas · CC BY 2.0Unemployment in Port Lavaca (10.5%) is higher than in 95% of U.S. towns
3% of workers work from home (Texas 14%). For jobs and income Port Lavaca is better than 23% of U.S. towns (C−); for walkability it is more walkable than 44% of U.S. towns (C+). About one in five work in Port Lavaca; the top destination outside it is Point Comfort (14%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Port Lavaca
Commutes from Port Lavaca 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 ↓
A big share show a job far from home
37% 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 ↓
Few Port Lavaca workers work from home
Only 3% 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.
Income, poverty and work: Port Lavaca’s grade explained
The poverty rate holds Port Lavaca’s grade up (10.2%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Port Lavaca could be anywhere from D to B−.
Port Lavaca’s commute takes 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 Port Lavaca workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,109 commuters (the 3% 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.
How many miles Port Lavaca commutes
About 37% 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.
Port Lavaca on a workday afternoon
On a workday 3,892 residents head out to work, 1,102 work right here, and 2,225 people come in from elsewhere.
About 9,400 people are in Port Lavaca on a workday afternoon, 15% 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.
Where people from Port Lavaca work
Where Port Lavaca clocks in
7% of workers
6% 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 Port Lavaca
3,327 jobs are based in Port Lavaca.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Port Lavaca, 2014 → 2024: 4,209 → 3,327. 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 Port Lavaca’s own residents hold wherever they work.
For most of Port Lavaca, work means a drive
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.0% across Texas.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 5,276 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). 8.5% of Port Lavaca households have no vehicle (Texas 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Port Lavaca’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 2,507 U.S. towns of 8,000 to 15,000, Port Lavaca comes 2,093rd on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 9 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Lucas TX | 8,896 | $221K | 1.3% | 2.6% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Lantana TX | 12,766 | $199K | 0.6% | 2.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,091 | Melvindale MI | 12,325 | $42K | 39.1% | 6.1% | 4% | C− |
| 2,092 | Circleville OH | 14,634 | $60K | 18.9% | 6.8% | 11% | C− |
| 2,093 | Port Lavaca TX | 11,060 | $70K | 10.2% | 10.5% | 22% | C− |
| 2,094 | Falls Township OH | 11,608 | $63K | 20.1% | 4.4% | 27% | C− |
| 2,095 | Ottawa Township IL | 11,179 | $70K | 16.6% | 8.4% | 18% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,507 | Roma TX | 11,543 | $25K | 37.1% | 12.4% | 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 Port Lavaca, 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 Port Lavaca: questions
What is the median household income in Port Lavaca?
$70,123 (±$12,068) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Port Lavaca?
10.2%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Port Lavaca?
19 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Port Lavaca work?
22% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Point Comfort (14%, 6 mi), Victoria (7%, 26 mi), Houston (6%, 110 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Port Lavaca walkable?
Port Lavaca is more walkable than 44% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 8.7 out of 20, and <1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Port Lavaca without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Port Lavaca, from the people who make the trip.
More of Port Lavaca
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.