Most of Red Oak commutes out: there are 0.4 jobs for every working resident
The two grades for Red Oak are A− for jobs and income and C− for walkability. There are 3,341 jobs in Red Oak, and 8,068 of its residents work somewhere. Household incomes here are higher than in 80% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Red Oak at work: what stands out
Red Oak has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Red Oak went from 1,825 in 2013 to 3,341 in 2023, +83%. The jobs ↓
Red Oak and Dallas trade workers both ways
Dallas is the top workplace for Red Oak residents (29%) and also where the most people who work in Red Oak come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Red Oak
66% of Red Oak residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 47% of the jobs based in Red Oak pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 97% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Jobs & income in Red Oak: the grade in detail
Job access by car holds Red Oak’s grade up (ahead of 94% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Red Oak could be anywhere from B to A+.
What Red Oak’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Red Oak, 2013 → 2023: 1,825 → 3,341. 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 Red Oak’s own residents hold wherever they work.
29% of working residents work in Dallas
Where Red Oak clocks in
6% 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.
Who works in Red Oak, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 7,834 residents head out to work, 234 work right here, and 3,107 people come in from elsewhere.
About 16,000 people are in Red Oak on a workday afternoon, 23% 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.
About 27 minutes each way, about the TX average
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Red Oak workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,372 commuters (the 15% 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.
The distance from Red Oak to work
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.
Driving is how Red Oak gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Red Oak is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns, #511 of 642 in Texas. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any 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 8,678 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). 7.4% of Red Oak households have no vehicle (Texas 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Red Oak’s commuters take a bus or train.
681st of 1,931: where Red Oak ranks among U.S. towns of 14,000 to 28,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ada Township MI | 14,769 | $168K | 2.0% | 0.7% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Colleyville TX | 25,727 | $218K | 2.5% | 3.0% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 20 | Corinth TX | 25,297 | $121K | 3.5% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 49 | Bellaire TX | 17,434 | $244K | 2.4% | 3.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 679 | North Aurora IL | 19,406 | $114K | 6.3% | 5.5% | 3% | A− |
| 680 | Grayslake IL | 21,140 | $114K | 6.3% | 5.4% | 8% | A− |
| 681 | Red Oak TX | 20,394 | $105K | 5.2% | 6.0% | 3% | A− |
| 682 | Wailuku HI | 16,926 | $103K | 4.6% | 3.1% | 19% | A− |
| 683 | Fresno TX | 24,560 | $91K | 8.6% | 3.7% | <1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,931 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Red Oak, the top three, the last and three more from Texas.
Next door to Red Oak
The biggest share goes to Waxahachie (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Red Oak workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Oak | – | A− | C− | 27 min | $104,561 |
| Waxahachie | 5% | A− | B− | 26 min | $85,723 |
| Glenn Heights | under 3% | B | C− | 33 min | $81,718 |
| Oak Leaf | under 3% | A+ | C− | 25 min | $131,806 |
| Pecan Hill | under 3% | — | — | 42 min | — |
| Lancaster | 3% | C+ | C+ | 29 min | $68,302 |
| Ferris | under 3% | A− | C− | 32 min | $89,722 |
Same-state neighbors only. Pecan Hill: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Red Oak’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 Red Oak: questions
What is the median household income in Red Oak?
$104,561 (±$15,941) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Red Oak?
5.2%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Red Oak?
27 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Red Oak work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Dallas (29%, 20 mi), Fort Worth (6%, 38 mi), Irving (5%, 26 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Red Oak walkable?
Red Oak is more walkable than 24% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 7.1 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Red Oak without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Red Oak, from the people who make the trip.
More of Red Oak
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. 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.