Photo: Beltway Photos · CC BY 2.0Few U.S. towns have household incomes as high as McLean’s
Household incomes here are among the highest in the country. Poverty touches 2.9% of residents, against 9.9% across Virginia. Only 6% work in McLean itself; outside it, Washington draws the most (21%, 10 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in McLean
A lot of McLean works from home
38% of McLean workers work from home, against 18% across Virginia. Time on the road ↓
A lot of McLean workers cross into Washington, D.C.
25% of McLean workers work outside Virginia, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Washington (21%) and Bethesda (2%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
80% of McLean’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data, and so do 72% of the jobs based in McLean. The jobs ↓
McLean draws workers from far and wide
The 15,311 jobs in McLean are filled from a wide area. McLean’s own residents hold 8% and the ten next-biggest home towns 25%; the other 67% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Most McLean residents work close to home
64% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. Only 8% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
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’s behind McLean’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, McLean is among the top U.S. towns, #9 of 253 in Virginia. Household income is its strongest input ($250,000+, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (2.3%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
The Census reports McLean’s median household income as $250,000+, the top of its scale; the grade ranks it as tied with the 111 other graded places at that ceiling.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, McLean stays A+.
Getting to work from McLean 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 McLean workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 14,279 commuters (the 38% 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.
Where people from McLean work
Where McLean clocks in
21% of workers
10% 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.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in McLean
15,311 jobs are based in McLean.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in McLean, 2013 → 2023: 12,589 → 15,311. 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 McLean’s own residents hold wherever they work.
McLean’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.
The daily commute in and out of McLean
On a workday 18,319 residents head out to work, 1,156 work right here, and 14,155 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.79 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
McLean is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 23,127 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 66% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 16% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 11.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 95% 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). 4.3% of McLean households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of McLean’s commuters take a bus or train.
McLean next to U.S. towns of 35,000 to 67,000: 1st of 887 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Upper Arlington OH | 35,893 | $155K | 3.3% | 2.0% | 7% | A+ |
| 3 | Oakton VA | 36,528 | $161K | 4.6% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Ashburn VA | 46,026 | $155K | 4.0% | 3.2% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 58 | Linton Hall VA | 41,876 | $179K | 2.2% | 3.8% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 85 | Mechanicsville VA | 38,683 | $99K | 5.2% | 1.9% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 887 | 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 McLean, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Bordering towns draw 19% of McLean’s workers
The biggest share goes to Tysons (10%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | McLean workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McLean | – | A+ | A | 28 min | $250,000+ |
| Great Falls | under 2% | A+ | B | 34 min | $250,000+ |
| Wolf Trap | under 2% | A+ | A− | 30 min | $250,000+ |
| Pimmit Hills | under 2% | A+ | A+ | 24 min | $172,880 |
| Tysons | 10% | A | A+ | 27 min | $129,818 |
| Idylwood | under 2% | A+ | A | 25 min | $120,109 |
| Arlington | 9% | A | A+ | 26 min | $142,114 |
| Falls Church | under 2% | A | A+ | 29 min | $143,262 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of McLean’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.
- A ceiling on income. The Census stops at $250,000+, so the true median may be higher.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in McLean: questions
What is the median household income in McLean?
$250,000+ (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in McLean?
2.9%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from McLean?
28 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 38% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in McLean work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (21%, 10 mi), Tysons (10%, 2 mi), Arlington (9%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is McLean walkable?
McLean is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.4 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around McLean without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 16% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from McLean, from the people who make the trip.
More of McLean
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.