Woodlawn has 0.4 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Employers in Woodlawn report 330 jobs, and 809 of its residents work somewhere. The two grades for Woodlawn are B for jobs and income and D for walkability. At home: 3% of workers have no commute at all (Virginia 18%).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Woodlawn, in brief
Fewer jobs are based in Woodlawn than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Woodlawn fell from 978 in 2014 to 330 in 2024, −66%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Few Woodlawn workers work from home
Only 3% of workers work from home, against 18% across Virginia. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Commutes from Woodlawn are quick
The average trip to work takes 22 minutes, against 27 across Virginia. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Virginia worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 809 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Woodlawn
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Woodlawn is better than 60% of U.S. towns. Unemployment holds Woodlawn’s grade up (2.1%, U.S. 5.2%); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 25% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Woodlawn could be anywhere from C− to A−.
Jobs in Woodlawn: what the 330 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Woodlawn, 2014 → 2024: 978 → 330. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Woodlawn’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Woodlawn: about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Woodlawn workers work from home, vs 18% across Virginia. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 899 commuters (the 3% 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 commute in and out of Woodlawn
On a workday 793 residents head out to work, 16 work right here, and 314 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,800 people are in Woodlawn on a workday afternoon, 21% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
18% of working residents work in Galax
Where Woodlawn clocks in
18% of workers
15% of workers
4% 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.
Woodlawn’s commute, mile by mile
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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Most of Woodlawn commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Woodlawn is more walkable than 12% of U.S. towns. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: hardly any 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 929 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 13.0% of Woodlawn households have no vehicle (Virginia 6.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Woodlawn’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 1,600 to 3,000, Woodlawn ranks 1,623rd of 5,102 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Sully Square VA | 2,394 | $176K | 0.8% | 0.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 21 | Oak Grove VA | 2,408 | $174K | 0.6% | 2.5% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 54 | Mason Neck VA | 2,039 | $168K | 1.1% | 2.3% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,621 | Sullivan WI | 2,318 | $86K | 6.7% | 6.6% | 1% | B |
| 1,622 | Mountain View Ranches AZ | 1,984 | $116K | 2.1% | 6.7% | 1% | B |
| 1,623 | Woodlawn VA | 2,250 | $78K | 7.6% | 2.1% | 2% | B |
| 1,624 | Evans City PA | 1,670 | $74K | 4.1% | 7.2% | 3% | B |
| 1,625 | Claridon Township OH | 2,895 | $79K | 12.9% | 0.5% | 7% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 5,102 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 61% | 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 Woodlawn, the top three, the last and three more from Virginia.
15% of Woodlawn works in a bordering town
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Woodlawn workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodlawn | – | B | D | 22 min | $78,405 |
| Hillsville | 15% | D | B+ | 27 min | $58,000 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Hillsville. Darker towns draw more of Woodlawn’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 2024, 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 Woodlawn: questions
What is the median household income in Woodlawn?
$78,405 (±$28,273) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $93,170 across Virginia and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Woodlawn?
7.6%, against 9.9% across Virginia and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Woodlawn?
22 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Virginia and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Woodlawn work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Galax (18%, 8 mi), Hillsville (15%, 4 mi), Wytheville (4%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is Woodlawn walkable?
Woodlawn is more walkable than 12% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.8 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Woodlawn without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 13% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Woodlawn, from the people who make the trip.
More of Woodlawn
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.