Prince William Forest Park Historic District · Photo: National Park Service Digital Image Archives · Public domainHouseholds in Montclair earn more than those in 96% of U.S. towns
Montclair grades A− for jobs and income and A for walkability. 3.8% of residents live below the poverty line, where Virginia as a whole has 9.9%. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 3.7 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 56.3 in Arlington.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Montclair: the figures worth knowing
The better-paid jobs are outside Montclair
69% of Montclair residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 33% of the jobs based in Montclair pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Montclair workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 38 minutes each way, against 27 across Virginia. Over a year that’s about 291 hours of commuting, 84 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Montclair is a place people come home to
There are 1,509 jobs based in Montclair, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Montclair has about 15,000 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Montclair’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Montclair is Washington, DC, 27 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (763) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Many jobs in Montclair pay little
28% of the jobs based in Montclair pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 36% 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.
The figures behind Montclair’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Montclair is better than 84% of U.S. towns, #98 of 253 in Virginia. Household income holds Montclair’s grade up ($155,774, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (5.8%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Montclair could be anywhere from A− to A.
What the 1,509 jobs in Montclair are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Montclair, 2013 → 2023: 1,306 → 1,509. 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 Montclair’s own residents hold wherever they work.
From Montclair, about 38 minutes to the job
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Montclair workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,890 commuters (the 25% 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 daily flow of workers through Montclair
On a workday 8,759 residents head out to work, 189 work right here, and 1,320 people come in from elsewhere.
About 15,000 people are in Montclair on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
0.17 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.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Montclair
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.
9% of working residents work in Washington
Where Montclair clocks in
9% 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.
Montclair is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Montclair is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns, #75 of 253 in Virginia. Both inputs place Montclair 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 10,571 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 65% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 14% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 3.7 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). 1.0% of Montclair households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 6% of Montclair’s commuters take a bus or train.
Montclair next to U.S. towns of 16,000 to 30,000: 466th of 1,658 on jobs and income
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Rose Hill VA | 21,066 | $175K | 2.6% | 2.7% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Franconia VA | 18,335 | $152K | 2.8% | 2.7% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 464 | Wilton NY | 17,643 | $99K | 4.5% | 2.7% | 10% | A− |
| 465 | Green OH | 27,553 | $95K | 7.1% | 2.9% | 11% | A− |
| 466 | Montclair VA | 22,387 | $156K | 3.8% | 5.8% | 2% | A− |
| 467 | Westchester IL | 16,300 | $99K | 5.0% | 5.2% | 3% | A− |
| 468 | Saginaw TX | 26,706 | $97K | 5.6% | 4.6% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,658 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Montclair, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Montclair and the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Montclair workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montclair | – | A− | A | 38 min | $155,774 |
| Dale City | under 3% | A− | A− | 37 min | $111,994 |
| Independent Hill | under 3% | A+ | B− | 42 min | $204,886 |
| Leesylvania | under 3% | A− | A | 40 min | $132,524 |
| Cherry Hill | under 3% | B+ | A | 41 min | $122,447 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Montclair’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 Montclair: questions
What is the median household income in Montclair?
$155,774 (±$9,193) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Montclair?
3.8%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Montclair?
38 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 25% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Montclair work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (9%, 27 mi), Arlington (6%, 22 mi), Tysons (3%, 22 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Montclair walkable?
Montclair is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 9.2 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Montclair without a car?
6% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 14% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Montclair, from the people who make the trip.
More of Montclair
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.