Photo: ajay_suresh · CC BY 2.0Households in Fairfax have higher incomes than those in 92% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 4.2 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 56.3 in Arlington. 9.1% of residents are in poverty (Virginia 9.9%). Jobs and income earn Fairfax A; getting around on foot earns it A+.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Fairfax apart on work
Fairfax draws workers from far and wide
The 22,275 jobs in Fairfax are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 21%; the other 75% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Fairfax is where the jobs are
Fairfax has 22,275 jobs, 1.9 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 37,000 people are in town, 40% more than the 27,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
A lot of Fairfax works from home
29% of Fairfax workers work from home, against 18% across Virginia. 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Fairfax
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Fairfax is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #80 of 253 in Virginia. Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 96% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns. It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Fairfax could be anywhere from A− to A+.
Commuting in to Fairfax: where workers come from
Where Fairfax clocks in
10% of workers
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.
Fairfax by day and by night
On a workday 10,759 residents head out to work, 820 work right here, and 21,455 people come in from elsewhere.
About 37,000 people are in Fairfax on a workday afternoon, 40% more than live here.
1.9 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.
Getting to work from Fairfax takes about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Fairfax workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9,273 commuters (the 29% 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.
The kinds of work in Fairfax
22,275 jobs are based in Fairfax.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Fairfax, 2013 → 2023: 21,429 → 22,275. 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 Fairfax’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Miles to work from Fairfax
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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Fairfax
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Fairfax is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns, #13 of 253 in Virginia. Both inputs place Fairfax 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 13,084 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 35% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 81% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.9% of Fairfax households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 6% of Fairfax’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Fairfax is 307th of 1,477 U.S. towns of 19,000 to 36,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 14 | Rose Hill VA | 21,066 | $175K | 2.6% | 2.7% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 22 | Short Pump VA | 29,026 | $139K | 3.6% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 305 | Ramsey MN | 29,624 | $116K | 4.1% | 4.4% | 8% | A |
| 306 | Danvers MA | 29,211 | $125K | 4.8% | 4.7% | 14% | A |
| 307 | Fairfax VA | 26,772 | $132K | 9.1% | 3.3% | 7% | A |
| 308 | Crystal MN | 22,239 | $93K | 8.2% | 2.4% | 2% | A |
| 309 | Bruno Township KS | 19,221 | $103K | 5.3% | 2.8% | 10% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,477 | Nogales AZ | 19,495 | $43K | 28.0% | 15.7% | 37% | 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 Fairfax, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Next door to Fairfax
The biggest share goes to George Mason (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Fairfax workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfax | – | A | A+ | 28 min | $132,348 |
| George Mason | 4% | A− | A+ | 24 min | $150,341 |
| Oakton | under 3% | A+ | A+ | 29 min | $160,663 |
| Mantua | under 3% | A+ | A | 28 min | $213,047 |
| Long Branch | under 3% | A+ | B+ | 27 min | $185,208 |
| Fair Oaks | 4% | A− | A | 27 min | $123,947 |
| Merrifield | under 3% | A+ | A+ | 28 min | $136,373 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Fairfax’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 Fairfax: questions
What is the median household income in Fairfax?
$132,348 (±$10,015) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Fairfax?
9.1%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Fairfax?
28 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Fairfax work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (10%, 16 mi), Arlington (7%, 11 mi), Tysons (7%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Fairfax walkable?
Fairfax is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 15.6 out of 20, and 10% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Fairfax without a car?
6% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 35% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Fairfax, from the people who make the trip.
More of Fairfax
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.