Households in Santa Rosa have lower incomes than those in 97% of U.S. towns
39.4% of residents live below the poverty line (Texas 13.8%). Jobs and income earn Santa Rosa D; getting around on foot earns it D. Only 3% work in Santa Rosa itself; outside it, Harlingen draws the most (22%, 9 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Santa Rosa at work: what stands out
Santa Rosa and Harlingen trade workers both ways
Harlingen is the top workplace for Santa Rosa residents (22%) and also where the most people who work in Santa Rosa come from (17% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Commutes from Santa Rosa are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 27 across Texas. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Texas 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 650 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Jobs & income in Santa Rosa: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Santa Rosa is better than 8% of U.S. towns. Job access by car holds Santa Rosa’s grade up (ahead of 66% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Santa Rosa could be anywhere from D to C−.
Where the trip to work from Santa Rosa ends
Where Santa Rosa clocks in
22% of workers
8% 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.
About 20 minutes to work from Santa Rosa
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Santa Rosa workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 867 commuters (the 8% 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 daily commute in and out of Santa Rosa
On a workday 629 residents head out to work, 21 work right here, and 317 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,000 people are in Santa Rosa on a workday afternoon, 13% fewer than live here.
0.52 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.
Most jobs in Santa Rosa are in services
338 jobs are based in Santa Rosa.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Santa Rosa, 2013 → 2023: 389 → 338. 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 Santa Rosa’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Santa Rosa’s commute, mile by mile
About 26% 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.
Most of Santa Rosa commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Santa Rosa is more walkable than 8% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Santa Rosa 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 946 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). 12.6% of Santa Rosa households have no vehicle (Texas 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Santa Rosa’s commuters take a bus or train.
Santa Rosa next to U.S. towns of 1,600 to 3,200: 4,915th of 5,552 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | Hollywood Park TX | 3,140 | $138K | 2.6% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Oak Leaf TX | 1,684 | $132K | 2.8% | 5.5% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | Southside Place TX | 1,916 | $163K | 5.0% | 5.4% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,913 | Eureka Mill SC | 1,813 | $36K | 40.5% | 14.4% | 2% | D |
| 4,914 | Merriam Woods MO | 2,084 | $52K | 25.2% | 10.8% | <1% | D |
| 4,915 | Santa Rosa TX | 2,355 | $37K | 39.4% | 15.1% | 3% | D |
| 4,916 | Wellington UT | 1,606 | $61K | 18.8% | 5.6% | 3% | D |
| 4,917 | Sage Township MI | 2,502 | $57K | 15.1% | 8.7% | 1% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 5,552 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Santa Rosa, the top three, the last and three more from Texas.
The towns around Santa Rosa
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Santa Rosa workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Rosa | – | D | D | 20 min | $36,780 |
| Tierra Bonita | under 3% | — | — | — | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Tierra Bonita: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Santa Rosa’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 Santa Rosa: questions
What is the median household income in Santa Rosa?
$36,780 (±$11,219) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Santa Rosa?
39.4%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Santa Rosa?
20 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Santa Rosa work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Harlingen (22%, 9 mi), Brownsville (8%, 28 mi), McAllen (4%, 26 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Santa Rosa walkable?
Santa Rosa is more walkable than 8% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.1 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Santa Rosa without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 13% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Santa Rosa, from the people who make the trip.
More of Santa Rosa
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.