Carter Glass House · Photo: Richard Cheek, Photographer · Public domainLynchburg’s household incomes are lower than in 77% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 7.1 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 56.3 in Arlington. 18.6% of residents are in poverty (Virginia 9.9%). The two grades for Lynchburg are C 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
Jobs and commuting in Lynchburg: the gist
Commutes from Lynchburg are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 27 across Virginia. That’s about 77 hours a year less on the road than the typical Virginia worker, and quicker than any town next door (20 to 24 minutes). Time on the road ↓
Lynchburg is where the jobs are
Lynchburg has 45,575 jobs, 1.7 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Lynchburg draws workers from far and wide
The 45,575 jobs in Lynchburg are filled from a wide area. Lynchburg’s own residents hold 28% and the ten next-biggest home towns 17%; the other 55% 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Lynchburg
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Lynchburg is better than 27% of U.S. towns, #224 of 253 in Virginia. Job access by car holds Lynchburg’s grade up (ahead of 62% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Lynchburg could be anywhere from C− to C+.
About 17 minutes each way, quicker than most of Virginia
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Lynchburg workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 30,785 commuters (the 14% 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.
Who commutes out of Lynchburg, and who commutes in
On a workday 14,153 residents head out to work, 12,887 work right here, and 32,688 people come in from elsewhere.
About 100,000 people are in Lynchburg on a workday afternoon, 23% more than live here.
1.7 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.
Where Lynchburg’s workers come from
Where Lynchburg clocks in
5% of workers
3% 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.
What work there is in Lynchburg: 45,575 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Lynchburg, 2013 → 2023: 46,192 → 45,575. 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 Lynchburg’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far it is to work from Lynchburg
About 22% 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.
Lynchburg 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, Lynchburg is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns, #28 of 253 in Virginia. Both inputs place Lynchburg 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 35,735 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 96% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 87% 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). 11.6% of Lynchburg households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 3% of Lynchburg’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 57,000 to 110,000, and where Lynchburg sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 99 | Reston VA | 64,414 | $149K | 5.7% | 5.0% | 14% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 107 | Centreville VA | 71,706 | $140K | 7.2% | 4.4% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 185 | Dale City VA | 71,016 | $112K | 7.0% | 5.0% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 505 | Wilmington DE | 73,512 | $59K | 21.4% | 7.3% | 21% | C |
| 506 | Albany NY | 101,698 | $62K | 22.9% | 7.8% | 44% | C |
| 507 | Lynchburg VA | 81,347 | $58K | 18.6% | 5.3% | 48% | C |
| 508 | Johnson City TN | 74,943 | $57K | 20.3% | 5.6% | 44% | C |
| 509 | Mission TX | 88,992 | $61K | 19.4% | 7.8% | 21% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 559 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 51% | 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 Lynchburg, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Lynchburg and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Forest (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Lynchburg workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lynchburg | – | C | A+ | 17 min | $57,947 |
| Timberlake | 2% | B | B | 20 min | $75,657 |
| Madison Heights | 1% | C+ | C+ | 24 min | $60,215 |
| Forest | 5% | B | B− | 22 min | $81,552 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Lynchburg’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 Lynchburg: questions
What is the median household income in Lynchburg?
$57,947 (±$3,396) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Lynchburg?
18.6%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Lynchburg?
17 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Lynchburg work?
48% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Forest (5%, 5 mi), Roanoke (3%, 43 mi), Timberlake (2%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Lynchburg walkable?
Lynchburg is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 13.8 out of 20, and 9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Lynchburg without a car?
3% of commuters take transit and 12% of households have no car. 87% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Lynchburg, from the people who make the trip.
More of Lynchburg
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.