Photo: Famartin · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Greenbriar top those of 94% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 7.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 56.3 in Arlington. Poverty touches 4.7% of residents, where Virginia as a whole has 9.9%. The two grades for Greenbriar are A+ for jobs and income and A+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Greenbriar and work: the main findings
The better-paid jobs are outside Greenbriar
76% of Greenbriar residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 43% of the jobs based in Greenbriar pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Greenbriar pay little
26% of the jobs based in Greenbriar pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 35% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. 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.
Income, poverty and work: Greenbriar’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Greenbriar is better than 96% of U.S. towns, #42 of 253 in Virginia. Job access by car is its strongest input (ahead of 95% of U.S. towns); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.0%, U.S. 5.2%). 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, Greenbriar could be anywhere from A− to A+.
The kinds of work in Greenbriar
1,288 jobs are based in Greenbriar.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Greenbriar, 2013 → 2023: 1,671 → 1,288. 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 Greenbriar’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A workday in Greenbriar: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 3,599 residents head out to work, 74 work right here, and 1,214 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,900 people are in Greenbriar on a workday afternoon, 29% fewer than live here.
0.35 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute 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.
7% of working residents work in Washington
Where Greenbriar clocks in
7% 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.
About 30 minutes each way for Greenbriar’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Greenbriar workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,201 commuters (the 24% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Greenbriar
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.
Greenbriar is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Greenbriar is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns, #17 of 253 in Virginia. Both inputs place Greenbriar 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 4,213 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, 30% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 7.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 89% 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 Greenbriar households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 11% of Greenbriar’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Greenbriar ranks: 169th of 2,956 U.S. towns of 5,800 to 11,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 6 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 11 | Difficult Run VA | 9,938 | $250K | 1.4% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 167 | Shamong Township NJ | 6,659 | $128K | 3.2% | 2.4% | 7% | A+ |
| 168 | Oconomowoc WI | 8,849 | $115K | 4.0% | 1.5% | 4% | A+ |
| 169 | Greenbriar VA | 8,243 | $143K | 4.7% | 3.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 170 | Fair Lakes VA | 8,894 | $127K | 5.5% | 2.5% | 3% | A+ |
| 171 | New Whiteland IN | 5,937 | $90K | 3.3% | 0.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,956 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Greenbriar, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
How Greenbriar compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Chantilly (6%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Greenbriar workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenbriar | – | A+ | A+ | 30 min | $142,634 |
| Fair Lakes | under 3% | A+ | A− | 29 min | $127,332 |
| Chantilly | 6% | A+ | A | 28 min | $157,124 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Greenbriar’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 Greenbriar: questions
What is the median household income in Greenbriar?
$142,634 (±$20,967) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Greenbriar?
4.7%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Greenbriar?
30 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 24% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Greenbriar work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (7%, 21 mi), Springfield (7%, 13 mi), Arlington (7%, 16 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Greenbriar walkable?
Greenbriar is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 13.7 out of 20, and 11% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Greenbriar without a car?
11% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 30% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Greenbriar, from the people who make the trip.
More of Greenbriar
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.