Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Uvalde (1.4%) is lower than in 91% of U.S. towns
5% of workers have no commute at all, against 14% across Texas. For jobs and income Uvalde is better than 27% of U.S. towns (C); for walkability it is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns (B+). Household incomes here are lower than in 87% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Uvalde stands out on work
Uvalde’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Uvalde is San Antonio, 77 miles away as the crow flies. 14% of working residents (1,019) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Most jobs in Uvalde go to people who live here
Of the 5,673 jobs based in Uvalde, 47% are held by Uvalde residents. In most towns, people from elsewhere hold most of the local jobs. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
44% 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 Uvalde 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 ↓
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.
Where Uvalde’s Jobs & income grade comes from
Unemployment holds Uvalde’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (23.9%, U.S. 12.5%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Uvalde could be anywhere from C− to C+.
Short hops and long hauls from Uvalde
About 44% 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.
The daily flow of workers through Uvalde
On a workday 4,451 residents head out to work, 2,673 work right here, and 3,000 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.80 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
A commute of about 19 minutes in Uvalde
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Uvalde workers work from home, vs 14% across Texas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 5,927 commuters (the 5% 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.
14% of working residents work in San Antonio
Where Uvalde clocks in
14% of workers
2% of workers
2% 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.
Inside Uvalde’s 5,673 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Uvalde, 2013 → 2023: 5,486 → 5,673. 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 Uvalde’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Few in Uvalde walk, bike or ride to work
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.3% 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 6,255 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). 5.7% of Uvalde households have no vehicle (Texas 5.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Uvalde’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Uvalde ranks: 1,737th of 2,109 U.S. towns of 11,000 to 21,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 4 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 26 | Lantana TX | 12,766 | $199K | 0.6% | 2.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 58 | Bellaire TX | 17,434 | $244K | 2.4% | 3.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,735 | Defiance Township OH | 13,305 | $66K | 16.1% | 5.3% | 22% | C |
| 1,736 | Oskaloosa IA | 11,493 | $64K | 16.6% | 4.8% | 32% | C |
| 1,737 | Uvalde TX | 15,455 | $51K | 23.9% | 1.4% | 38% | C |
| 1,738 | Gladeview FL | 16,655 | $47K | 27.5% | 6.3% | 2% | C |
| 1,739 | Monmouth OR | 11,543 | $69K | 16.1% | 7.1% | 11% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 2,109 | 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 Uvalde, 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 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 Uvalde: questions
What is the median household income in Uvalde?
$51,141 (±$6,045) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,476 across Texas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Uvalde?
23.9%, against 13.8% across Texas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Uvalde?
19 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Texas and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Uvalde work?
38% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are San Antonio (14%, 77 mi), Del Rio (2%, 68 mi), Eagle Pass (2%, 55 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Uvalde walkable?
Uvalde is more walkable than 70% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 9.1 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Uvalde without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Uvalde, from the people who make the trip.
More of Uvalde
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.