Photo: Mojo Hand · CC BY-SA 4.0A job hub: Clifton has 3.2 jobs per working resident, and 305 people come in to work
Only 2% work in Clifton itself; outside it, Washington draws the most (7%, 22 miles). There are 307 jobs in Clifton, and 95 of its residents work somewhere. Working residents average 28 minutes each way, about the same as across Virginia.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who leaves Clifton for work, and who comes in
On a workday 93 residents head out to work and 2 work right here.
About 450 people are in Clifton on a workday afternoon, 88% 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.
Where the people who work in Clifton live
Where Clifton clocks in
7% 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.
Jobs in Clifton: what the 307 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Clifton, 2013 → 2023: 121 → 307. 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 Clifton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 28 minutes to work from Clifton
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Clifton workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 130 commuters (the 18% 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.
Clifton’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Around Clifton: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Union Mill (3%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Clifton workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clifton | – | — | — | 28 min | $232,500 |
| Union Mill | 3% | A+ | B− | 37 min | $250,000+ |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Clifton’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 Clifton: questions
What is the median household income in Clifton?
$232,500 (±$37,579) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Clifton?
0.0%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Clifton?
28 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Clifton work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (7%, 22 mi), Reston (7%, 12 mi), Arlington (6%, 17 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Clifton without a car?
1% 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 Clifton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Clifton
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.