Seattle draws about half of Shoreline’s working residents
Measured by household income, Shoreline is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns. Only 7% stay in Shoreline for work; outside it, Seattle is the main destination (46%, 10 miles). The average commute takes 27 minutes each way (Washington 27, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Shoreline
Nearly half of Shoreline works in Seattle
12,401 working residents, 46%, have their main job in Seattle, 9.6 miles away across the town line. That’s 7 times as many as work in Shoreline itself. The commute map ↓
Three in four Shoreline workers earn over $40,000 a year
78% of Shoreline’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. The jobs ↓
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.
What’s behind Shoreline’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Shoreline is better than 79% of U.S. towns, #75 of 285 in Washington. Job access by car holds Shoreline’s grade up (ahead of 91% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.6%, 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, Shoreline could be anywhere from B+ to A.
Where Shoreline goes to work
Where Shoreline clocks in
46% 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.
69% of the jobs in Shoreline pay over $3,333 a month
15,871 jobs are based in Shoreline.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Shoreline, 2014 → 2024: 15,266 → 15,871. 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 Shoreline’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Shoreline on a workday afternoon
On a workday 25,136 residents head out to work, 1,924 work right here, and 13,947 people come in from elsewhere.
About 55,000 people are in Shoreline on a workday afternoon, 17% fewer than live here.
0.59 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 2024, primary jobs.
Commuting from Shoreline: about 27 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Shoreline workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 23,303 commuters (the 26% 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.
Shoreline’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Shoreline 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 31,304 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 99% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 53% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 31.8 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). 7.1% of Shoreline households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 8% of Shoreline’s commuters take a bus or train.
210th of 648: where Shoreline ranks among U.S. towns of 47,000 to 90,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLean VA | 49,627 | $250K | 2.9% | 2.3% | 6% | A+ |
| 2 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 3 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Sammamish WA | 66,110 | $240K | 4.3% | 3.1% | 3% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 57 | Bothell WA | 52,199 | $140K | 4.8% | 3.9% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 119 | Redmond WA | 82,506 | $163K | 5.6% | 4.9% | 32% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 208 | Blue Springs MO | 61,632 | $89K | 7.0% | 3.5% | 13% | A− |
| 209 | Cherry Hill Township NJ | 79,965 | $122K | 7.5% | 5.8% | 13% | A− |
| 210 | Shoreline WA | 66,542 | $113K | 8.8% | 4.6% | 7% | A− |
| 211 | Waukesha WI | 70,872 | $84K | 9.8% | 2.7% | 20% | A− |
| 212 | South Hill WA | 68,025 | $113K | 7.2% | 4.2% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 648 | Pahrump NV | 47,347 | $62K | 13.7% | 8.5% | 27% | 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 Shoreline, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
Next door is work for 48% of Shoreline
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Shoreline workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shoreline | – | A− | A+ | 27 min | $112,751 |
| Lake Forest Park | under 2% | A | A | 28 min | $159,904 |
| Edmonds | 2% | A | A | 27 min | $122,449 |
| Seattle | 46% | A− | A+ | 26 min | $123,860 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Seattle. Darker towns draw more of Shoreline’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 Shoreline: questions
What is the median household income in Shoreline?
$112,751 (±$7,851) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Shoreline?
8.8%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Shoreline?
27 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 26% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Shoreline work?
7% work in town.
Is Shoreline walkable?
Shoreline is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 14.3 out of 20, and 11% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Shoreline without a car?
8% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. 53% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Shoreline, from the people who make the trip.
More of Shoreline
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.