Photo: Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC BY-SA 4.0Lake Ridge’s household incomes are higher than in 91% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 3.6 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 56.3 in Arlington. Below the poverty line: 5.8% of residents, next to 9.9% across Virginia. The two grades for Lake Ridge 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
Lake Ridge and work: the main findings
Lake Ridge workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 36 minutes each way, against 27 across Virginia. Over a year that’s about 276 hours of commuting, 69 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
No single place dominates Lake Ridge’s commute
The biggest draw, Washington, DC, gets only 8% of working residents, and 60% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Lake Ridge residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Lake Ridge
69% of Lake Ridge residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 44% of the jobs based in Lake Ridge pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 96% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Lake Ridge draws workers from far and wide
The 5,930 jobs in Lake Ridge are filled from a wide area. Lake Ridge’s own residents hold 12% and the ten next-biggest home towns 28%; the other 60% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Lake Ridge
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lake Ridge is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #79 of 253 in Virginia. Household income is its strongest input ($127,154, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lake Ridge could be anywhere from A− to A+.
Commuting from Lake Ridge: about 36 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lake Ridge workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 19,416 commuters (the 20% 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.
8% of working residents work in Washington
Where Lake Ridge clocks in
8% of workers
5% 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.
Services make up most of the work in Lake Ridge
5,930 jobs are based in Lake Ridge.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lake Ridge, 2013 → 2023: 4,726 → 5,930. 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 Lake Ridge’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes Lake Ridge
On a workday 18,617 residents head out to work, 696 work right here, and 5,234 people come in from elsewhere.
About 33,000 people are in Lake Ridge on a workday afternoon, 29% fewer than live here.
0.31 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.
The commute from Lake Ridge, by distance
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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Lake Ridge
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Lake Ridge is more walkable than 78% of U.S. towns, #112 of 253 in Virginia. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 3.5% of 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 24,228 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 52% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 79% 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). 2.8% of Lake Ridge households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of Lake Ridge’s commuters take a bus or train.
188th of 969: where Lake Ridge ranks among U.S. towns of 32,000 to 62,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| 3 | Upper Arlington OH | 35,893 | $155K | 3.3% | 2.0% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5 | Oakton VA | 36,528 | $161K | 4.6% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 49 | Ashburn VA | 46,026 | $155K | 4.0% | 3.2% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 186 | Royal Oak MI | 57,583 | $101K | 6.2% | 3.5% | 8% | A |
| 187 | Severn MD | 58,402 | $134K | 5.7% | 4.6% | 5% | A |
| 188 | Lake Ridge VA | 46,049 | $127K | 5.8% | 4.0% | 4% | A |
| 189 | Rancho Palos Verdes CA | 39,654 | $180K | 4.2% | 5.5% | 4% | A |
| 190 | East Brunswick Township NJ | 50,678 | $143K | 5.8% | 4.7% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 969 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Lake Ridge, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Lake Ridge and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Potomac Mills (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lake Ridge workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Ridge | – | A | A− | 36 min | $127,154 |
| Potomac Mills | 3% | B | A | 30 min | $104,545 |
| County Center | under 3% | A− | A | 44 min | $152,356 |
| Dale City | under 3% | A− | A− | 37 min | $111,994 |
| Occoquan | under 3% | A+ | A | 36 min | $134,323 |
| Woodbridge | under 3% | B+ | A− | 35 min | $104,741 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Lake Ridge’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 Lake Ridge: questions
What is the median household income in Lake Ridge?
$127,154 (±$5,913) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lake Ridge?
5.8%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lake Ridge?
36 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 20% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lake Ridge work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (8%, 22 mi), Arlington (6%, 17 mi), Alexandria (5%, 15 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lake Ridge walkable?
Lake Ridge is more walkable than 78% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 9.2 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lake Ridge without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lake Ridge, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lake Ridge
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.