Frederick W. Winters House · Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0Household incomes in Bellevue top those of 97% of U.S. towns
36% of workers work from home (Washington 20%). 7.2% of residents are in poverty, where Washington as a whole has 9.9%. The two grades for Bellevue are A for jobs and income and A+ for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Bellevue in brief
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
83% of Bellevue’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 82% of the jobs based in Bellevue. The jobs ↓
Home offices are common in Bellevue
36% of Bellevue workers work from home, against 20% across Washington. Time on the road ↓
Most Bellevue residents work close to home
74% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about three in four. Only 4% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
Bellevue is where the jobs are
Bellevue has 149,690 jobs, 2.1 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 233,000 people are in town, 51% more than the 154,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Bellevue and Seattle trade workers both ways
Seattle is the top workplace for Bellevue residents (32%) and also where the most people who work in Bellevue come from (20% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Bellevue
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Bellevue is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #44 of 285 in Washington. Household income is its strongest input ($165,576, U.S. $80,734); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.2%, 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, Bellevue could be anywhere from A− to A.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in Bellevue
149,690 jobs are based in Bellevue.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bellevue, 2013 → 2023: 121,996 → 149,690. 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 Bellevue’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 24 minutes each way for Bellevue’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bellevue workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 51,319 commuters (the 36% who work from home are left out). Across Washington: 79% drive alone, 4% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Near or far: the trip to work from Bellevue
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.
How many people are in Bellevue by day
On a workday 56,260 residents head out to work, 15,022 work right here, and 134,668 people come in from elsewhere.
About 233,000 people are in Bellevue on a workday afternoon, 51% more than live here.
2.1 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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 send workers to Bellevue
Where Bellevue clocks in
32% 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.
Bellevue is more walkable than 98% 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 79,631 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 86% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 42% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 32.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, among the most 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). 9.1% of Bellevue households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 8% of Bellevue’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
How Bellevue ranks: 18th of 222 U.S. towns of 108,000 to 208,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pearland TX | 129,930 | $119K | 4.1% | 3.3% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Smithtown NY | 116,847 | $153K | 4.2% | 3.9% | 16% | A |
| 3 | Berkeley CA | 121,911 | $108K | 17.3% | 5.6% | 21% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 16 | Carrollton TX | 134,562 | $101K | 7.1% | 3.3% | 11% | A |
| 17 | Ann Arbor MI | 122,233 | $82K | 23.8% | 3.9% | 48% | A |
| 18 | Bellevue WA | 154,193 | $166K | 7.2% | 4.2% | 21% | A |
| 19 | Downers Grove Township IL | 149,599 | $117K | 6.2% | 4.3% | 14% | A |
| 20 | Schaumburg Township IL | 131,411 | $99K | 6.7% | 3.4% | 16% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 105 | Kent WA | 134,871 | $92K | 10.8% | 7.0% | 15% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 107 | Vancouver WA | 199,698 | $81K | 10.2% | 5.7% | 35% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 119 | Everett WA | 113,567 | $84K | 12.9% | 5.8% | 28% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 222 | Macon-Bibb County GA | 157,556 | $51K | 24.7% | 8.1% | 53% | 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 Bellevue, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
23% of Bellevue works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Redmond (17%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bellevue workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellevue | – | A | A+ | 24 min | $165,576 |
| Redmond | 17% | A | A+ | 22 min | $162,560 |
| Medina | under 2% | A+ | A | 21 min | $250,000+ |
| Beaux Arts Village | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Issaquah | 2% | A | A | 25 min | $154,669 |
| Newcastle | under 2% | A− | A | 28 min | $160,278 |
| Kirkland | 4% | A | A+ | 24 min | $150,414 |
| Sammamish | under 2% | A | A | 29 min | $239,690 |
| Clyde Hill | under 2% | A | A+ | 18 min | $250,000+ |
| Mercer Island | under 2% | A+ | A | 24 min | $219,069 |
Same-state neighbors only. Beaux Arts Village: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Bellevue’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 Bellevue: questions
What is the median household income in Bellevue?
$165,576 (±$7,893) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bellevue?
7.2%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bellevue?
24 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 36% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bellevue work?
21% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Seattle (32%, 9 mi), Redmond (17%, 6 mi), Kirkland (4%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Bellevue walkable?
Bellevue is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 13.2 out of 20, and 15% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bellevue without a car?
8% of commuters take transit and 9% of households have no car. 42% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bellevue, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bellevue
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.