Claypool Hill’s household incomes are lower than in 92% of U.S. towns
15.5% of residents are in poverty (Virginia 9.9%). For jobs and income Claypool Hill is better than 7% of U.S. towns (D); for walkability it is more walkable than 22% of U.S. towns (C−). Only 5% work in Claypool Hill itself; outside it, Richlands draws the most (14%, 4 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Claypool Hill in brief
Claypool Hill is where the jobs are
Claypool Hill has 1,494 jobs, 2.4 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 2,500 people are in town, 54% more than the 1,600 who live here. Day and night ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
52% of the jobs in Claypool Hill are in trade, transport and utilities, against 21% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Claypool Hill
48% of Claypool Hill residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 23% of the jobs based in Claypool Hill pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 95% 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; with 620 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Jobs & income in Claypool Hill: the grade in detail
The poverty rate holds Claypool Hill’s grade up; household income pulls it down ($45,446, U.S. $80,734).
Unemployment (1.4%) is left out: Claypool Hill’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Claypool Hill could be anywhere from D− to C+.
A workday in Claypool Hill: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 586 residents head out to work, 34 work right here, and 1,460 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,500 people are in Claypool Hill on a workday afternoon, 54% more than live here.
2.4 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
What Claypool Hill’s employers do
1,494 jobs are based in Claypool Hill.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Claypool Hill, 2013 → 2023: 1,163 → 1,494. 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 Claypool Hill’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who travels to work in Claypool Hill, and from where
Where Claypool Hill clocks in
14% of workers
9% 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.
Time on the road from Claypool Hill: about 24 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Claypool Hill workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 534 commuters (the 16% who work from home are left out). Across Virginia: 83% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Half of Claypool Hill commutes less than 14 miles
About 21% 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.
Getting around Claypool Hill: mostly by car
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 5.7% across Virginia.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 636 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). 5.2% of Claypool Hill households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Claypool Hill’s commuters take a bus or train.
Claypool Hill places 5,362nd of 6,161 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 1,100 to 2,200
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | Great Falls Crossing VA | 1,414 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.7% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 75 | Mason Neck VA | 2,039 | $168K | 1.1% | 2.3% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 98 | Bull Run Mountain Estates VA | 1,827 | $250K | 1.1% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5,360 | Bovina TX | 1,677 | $49K | 16.4% | 1.7% | 4% | D |
| 5,361 | Frederic WI | 1,133 | $53K | 16.0% | 1.6% | 9% | D |
| 5,362 | Claypool Hill VA | 1,610 | $45K | 15.5% | 1.4% | 5% | D |
| 5,363 | Fort Ashby WV | 1,283 | $45K | 16.6% | 0.0% | 4% | D |
| 5,364 | Purvis MS | 1,969 | $46K | 22.8% | 1.8% | 12% | D |
| … | |||||||
| 6,161 | Paraje NM | 1,333 | $33K | 61.7% | 0.0% | 0% | 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 Claypool Hill, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Claypool Hill and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Cedar Bluff (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Claypool Hill workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claypool Hill | – | D | C− | 24 min | $45,446 |
| Cedar Bluff | 4% | D− | C− | 24 min | $37,170 |
| Pounding Mill | under 1% | — | — | 36 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Pounding Mill: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Claypool Hill’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 Claypool Hill: questions
What is the median household income in Claypool Hill?
$45,446 (±$13,833) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Claypool Hill?
15.5%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Claypool Hill?
24 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Claypool Hill work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Richlands (14%, 4 mi), Tazewell (9%, 14 mi), Cedar Bluff (4%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Claypool Hill walkable?
Claypool Hill is more walkable than 22% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 6.9 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Claypool Hill without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Claypool Hill, from the people who make the trip.
More of Claypool Hill
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.