Photo: The original uploader was Ser Amantio di Nicolao at English Wikipedia. · CC BY 3.0Household incomes in Mount Vernon are higher than in 96% of U.S. towns
5.6% of residents live below the poverty line; Virginia has 9.9%. Only 4% stay in Mount Vernon for work; outside it, Washington is the main destination (18%, 14 miles). Home is the office for 29% of workers, against 18% across Virginia.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Mount Vernon: the gist
The better-paid jobs are outside Mount Vernon
73% of Mount Vernon residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 49% of the jobs based in Mount Vernon pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 96% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Home offices are common in Mount Vernon
29% of Mount Vernon workers work from home, against 18% across Virginia. Time on the road ↓
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 Mount Vernon’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Mount Vernon is better than 91% of U.S. towns, #69 of 253 in Virginia. Household income is its strongest input ($163,750, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.1%, 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, Mount Vernon could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
In Mount Vernon, services account for most jobs
2,044 jobs are based in Mount Vernon.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Mount Vernon, 2013 → 2023: 2,068 → 2,044. 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 Mount Vernon’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Mount Vernon: about 31 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Mount Vernon workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,910 commuters (the 29% 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.
In and out of Mount Vernon on a workday
On a workday 4,811 residents head out to work, 184 work right here, and 1,860 people come in from elsewhere.
About 10,000 people are in Mount Vernon on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
0.41 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 towns that employ Mount Vernon’s residents
Where Mount Vernon clocks in
18% 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.
The distance from Mount Vernon to work
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.
Mount Vernon is more walkable than 89% 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 6,952 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 78% 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 14.5 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 96% 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). 7.4% of Mount Vernon households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 4% of Mount Vernon’s commuters take a bus or train.
Mount Vernon next to U.S. towns of 9,000 to 18,000: 381st of 2,526 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5 | Difficult Run VA | 9,938 | $250K | 1.4% | 1.9% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | Belmont VA | 9,729 | $243K | 2.1% | 1.1% | 2% | A+ |
| 14 | Wolf Trap VA | 15,858 | $250K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 379 | Jupiter Farms FL | 12,945 | $138K | 2.8% | 3.3% | 5% | A |
| 380 | Beckett Ridge OH | 9,496 | $116K | 5.2% | 3.4% | 4% | A |
| 381 | Mount Vernon VA | 13,122 | $164K | 5.6% | 4.1% | 4% | A |
| 382 | Shiloh IL | 14,604 | $100K | 6.8% | 1.7% | 4% | A |
| 383 | Millis MA | 9,463 | $156K | 4.8% | 4.2% | 8% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,526 | 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 Mount Vernon, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
Work in the towns next to Mount Vernon
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Mount Vernon workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Vernon | – | A | A | 31 min | $163,750 |
| Hybla Valley | under 2% | B | A+ | 32 min | $80,959 |
| Fort Belvoir | under 2% | A | A | 24 min | $104,205 |
| Fort Hunt | under 2% | A+ | A | 31 min | $216,038 |
| Woodlawn | under 2% | B | A+ | 32 min | $91,884 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Mount Vernon’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 Mount Vernon: questions
What is the median household income in Mount Vernon?
$163,750 (±$19,815) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Mount Vernon?
5.6%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Mount Vernon?
31 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Mount Vernon work?
4% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Washington (18%, 14 mi), Alexandria (10%, 7 mi), Arlington (9%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Mount Vernon walkable?
Mount Vernon is more walkable than 89% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.1 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Mount Vernon without a car?
4% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Mount Vernon, from the people who make the trip.
More of Mount Vernon
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.