Castolon Historic District · Photo: National Park Service Digital Image Archives · Public domainTerlingua has 4.0 jobs for every working resident: 83 people commute in to work
Employers in Terlingua report 84 jobs; 21 of its residents have a job. Only 5% work in Terlingua; the top destination outside it is Alpine (14%, 75 miles). For 10% of workers, the job is at home, against 14% across Texas.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Terlingua fills up on a workday
On a workday 20 residents head out to work and 1 work right here.
About 240 people are in Terlingua on a workday afternoon, 35% more 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.
The towns that send workers to Terlingua
Where Terlingua clocks in
14% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Terlingua, 2013 → 2023: 103 → 84. 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 Terlingua’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Working from home in Terlingua
of Terlingua workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 61 commuters (the 10% 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.
Short hops and long hauls from Terlingua
About 71% 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.
Work in the towns next to Terlingua
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Terlingua workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terlingua | – | — | — | — | $46,094 |
| Study Butte | 5% | — | — | 14 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Study Butte: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Study Butte. Darker towns draw more of Terlingua’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 Terlingua: questions
What is the median household income in Terlingua?
$46,094 (±$11,638) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Terlingua?
1.7%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
Where do people who live in Terlingua work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Alpine (14%, 75 mi), Marathon (14%, 68 mi), Hutchins (5%, 468 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Terlingua 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 Terlingua, from the people who make the trip.
More of Terlingua
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.