Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY 3.0Household incomes in Puyallup top those of 75% of U.S. towns
7.0% of residents are in poverty (Washington 9.9%). Puyallup grades B+ for jobs and income and A− for walkability. Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 4.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 94.7 in Seattle.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Puyallup: the figures worth knowing
Puyallup gains people on a workday
About 52,000 people are in Puyallup on a workday afternoon, 22% more than the 43,000 who live here: 27,000 come in to work and 18,000 head out. Day and night ↓
Puyallup draws workers from far and wide
The 29,396 jobs in Puyallup are filled from a wide area. Puyallup’s own residents hold 8% and the ten next-biggest home towns 37%; the other 55% come from many towns beyond those. 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.
Income, poverty and work: Puyallup’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Puyallup is better than 69% of U.S. towns, #115 of 285 in Washington. Job access by car holds Puyallup’s grade up (ahead of 82% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Puyallup could be anywhere from B to A−.
The workday shuffle in and out of Puyallup
On a workday 17,822 residents head out to work, 2,284 work right here, and 27,112 people come in from elsewhere.
About 52,000 people are in Puyallup on a workday afternoon, 22% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.46 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.
13% of working residents work in Tacoma
Where Puyallup clocks in
11% of workers
5% 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.
65% of the jobs in Puyallup pay over $3,333 a month
29,396 jobs are based in Puyallup.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Puyallup, 2013 → 2023: 22,832 → 29,396. 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 Puyallup’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 31 minutes from Puyallup
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Puyallup workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 18,238 commuters (the 13% 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.
The commute from Puyallup, 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.
Puyallup is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Puyallup is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns, #112 of 285 in Washington. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 4.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 8.9% across Washington.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 20,844 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 55% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 16% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.7 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 83% 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). 6.1% of Puyallup households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Puyallup’s commuters take a bus or train.
Puyallup next to U.S. towns of 30,000 to 58,000: 498th of 1,011 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Southlake TX | 31,175 | $250K | 1.5% | 2.7% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Leawood KS | 34,093 | $186K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 9% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 99 | Issaquah WA | 39,423 | $155K | 5.2% | 3.3% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 129 | Bothell WA | 52,199 | $140K | 4.8% | 3.9% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 147 | Edmonds WA | 42,748 | $122K | 3.8% | 4.1% | 7% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 496 | Cleburne TX | 39,942 | $71K | 10.0% | 2.0% | 23% | B+ |
| 497 | Weatherford TX | 40,634 | $82K | 10.0% | 3.2% | 20% | B+ |
| 498 | Puyallup WA | 42,682 | $98K | 7.0% | 6.0% | 11% | B+ |
| 499 | La Verne CA | 30,178 | $104K | 8.5% | 7.1% | 7% | B+ |
| 500 | San Luis Obispo CA | 50,636 | $74K | 30.4% | 7.0% | 39% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,011 | Bullhead City AZ | 43,987 | $51K | 18.7% | 11.5% | 26% | 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 Puyallup, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
Puyallup and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Fife (3%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Puyallup workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puyallup | – | B+ | A− | 31 min | $97,826 |
| North Puyallup | under 3% | A | A− | 31 min | $83,489 |
| Alderton | under 3% | B− | C− | 32 min | $97,446 |
| Summit | under 3% | B+ | B | 26 min | $106,736 |
| Edgewood | under 3% | A+ | B | 28 min | $116,132 |
| Fife | 3% | B | A− | 27 min | $90,532 |
| South Hill | under 3% | A− | B+ | 34 min | $113,130 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Puyallup’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 Puyallup: questions
What is the median household income in Puyallup?
$97,826 (±$5,806) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Puyallup?
7.0%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Puyallup?
31 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Puyallup work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Tacoma (13%, 9 mi), Seattle (11%, 31 mi), Kent (5%, 15 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Puyallup walkable?
Puyallup is more walkable than 84% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 10.7 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Puyallup without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 16% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Puyallup, from the people who make the trip.
More of Puyallup
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.