Photo: gplefka · Public domainUnemployment in Arlington (6.9%) is higher than in 82% of U.S. towns
36% of workers work from home (Vermont 17%). For jobs and income Arlington is better than 40% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns (B+). Measured by household income, Arlington is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Arlington and work: the main findings
Home offices are common in Arlington
36% of Arlington workers work from home, against 17% across Vermont. Time on the road ↓
Arlington makes and builds things
51% of the jobs based in Arlington are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Arlington residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 18%. The jobs ↓
Arlington has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Arlington went from 806 in 2013 to 1,294 in 2023, +61%. 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; with 944 working residents, small shifts move the shares; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Why Arlington gets the Jobs & income grade it does
Household income holds Arlington’s grade up ($102,308, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 10% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Arlington could be anywhere from C to B+.
The trip to work from Arlington: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Arlington workers work from home, vs 17% across Vermont. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 831 commuters (the 36% who work from home are left out). Across Vermont: 82% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
A place that makes things: 51% of Arlington’s jobs are in goods
1,294 jobs are based in Arlington.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Arlington, 2013 → 2023: 806 → 1,294. 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 Arlington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How a workday changes Arlington
On a workday 789 residents head out to work, 155 work right here, and 1,139 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,800 people are in Arlington on a workday afternoon, 15% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.37 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.
23% of working residents work in Manchester
Where Arlington clocks in
23% of workers
15% of workers
7% 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 commute from Arlington, by distance
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.
For most of Arlington, work means a drive
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,297 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 47% 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 0.6 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 52% 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). 3.5% of Arlington households have no vehicle (Vermont 6.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Arlington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Arlington is 2,745th of 4,995 U.S. towns of 1,700 to 3,200 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% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 736 | South Hero VT | 1,726 | $127K | 3.5% | 5.9% | 7% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 775 | East Montpelier VT | 2,594 | $93K | 2.1% | 2.6% | 16% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 805 | Dummerston VT | 1,859 | $102K | 4.5% | 1.6% | 5% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,743 | Marion Township OH | 2,453 | $91K | 9.9% | 6.7% | 1% | C+ |
| 2,744 | Cherryhill Township PA | 2,421 | $67K | 9.3% | 3.8% | 6% | C+ |
| 2,745 | Arlington VT | 2,404 | $102K | 7.5% | 6.9% | 16% | C+ |
| 2,746 | Fort Branch IN | 2,936 | $59K | 17.2% | 2.5% | 5% | C+ |
| 2,747 | Goshen Township OH | 3,051 | $61K | 4.6% | 12.9% | 5% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 4,995 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Arlington, the top three, the last and three more from Vermont.
Work in the towns next to Arlington
The biggest share goes to Sunderland (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Arlington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arlington | – | C+ | B+ | 20 min | $102,308 |
| Sunderland | 7% | C+ | C | 23 min | $88,523 |
| Shaftsbury | 2% | B− | B | 25 min | $86,071 |
| Sandgate | under 2% | — | — | 27 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Sandgate: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Arlington’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 Arlington: questions
What is the median household income in Arlington?
$102,308 (±$10,759) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $81,203 across Vermont and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Arlington?
7.5%, against 10.1% across Vermont and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Arlington?
20 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Vermont and 26 nationally. 36% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Arlington work?
16% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Manchester (23%, 11 mi), Bennington (15%, 12 mi), Sunderland (7%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Arlington walkable?
Arlington is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.4 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Arlington without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Arlington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Arlington
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.