Photo: SounderBruce · CC BY-SA 4.0At 1.0%, unemployment in Sultan is lower than in 94% of U.S. towns
Only 7% work in Sultan; the top destination outside it is Seattle (13%, 31 miles). The two grades for Sultan are A− for jobs and income and A− for walkability. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 4.1 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 94.7 in Seattle.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Sultan, in a few figures
Sultan workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 38 minutes each way, against 27 across Washington. Over a year that’s about 291 hours of commuting, 84 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Sultan’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Sultan is Seattle, 31 miles away as the crow flies. 13% of working residents (337) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
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.
Jobs & income in Sultan: the grade in detail
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Sultan is better than 77% of U.S. towns, #83 of 285 in Washington. Unemployment holds Sultan’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 30% of U.S. towns). 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, Sultan could be anywhere from B− to A.
How long Sultan spends getting to work: about 38 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sultan workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,421 commuters (the 20% 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.
Miles to work from Sultan
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.
In and out of Sultan on a workday
On a workday 2,461 residents head out to work, 186 work right here, and 855 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,600 people are in Sultan on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.
0.39 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 2023, primary jobs.
Out of Sultan to work: where people go
Where Sultan clocks in
13% of workers
9% of workers
9% 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 1,041 jobs based in Sultan
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sultan, 2013 → 2023: 884 → 1,041. 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 Sultan’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Sultan is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Sultan is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns, #149 of 285 in Washington. Both inputs place Sultan near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,028 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 30% 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 4.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 81% 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). 0.8% of Sultan households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Sultan’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Sultan is 891st among 3,122 U.S. towns of 5,100 to 9,800
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 117 | Normandy Park WA | 6,609 | $162K | 4.9% | 2.3% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 212 | Wollochet WA | 6,689 | $149K | 1.5% | 3.3% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 244 | Orting WA | 8,884 | $133K | 2.4% | 2.8% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 889 | Lihue HI | 7,901 | $93K | 6.3% | 0.7% | 33% | A− |
| 890 | Whispering Pines NC | 5,505 | $126K | 5.3% | 3.3% | 3% | A− |
| 891 | Sultan WA | 7,230 | $95K | 5.8% | 1.0% | 7% | A− |
| 892 | Elmira NY | 6,463 | $105K | 5.9% | 3.1% | 3% | A− |
| 893 | Beloit WI | 8,014 | $80K | 4.8% | 3.2% | 7% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,122 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 Sultan, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
Around Sultan: the bordering towns
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sultan workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sultan | – | A− | A− | 38 min | $94,730 |
| Startup | under 3% | — | — | — | — |
| North Sultan | under 3% | — | — | 38 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Startup and North Sultan: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Sultan’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 Sultan: questions
What is the median household income in Sultan?
$94,730 (±$24,490) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sultan?
5.8%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sultan?
38 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 20% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sultan work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Seattle (13%, 31 mi), Everett (9%, 19 mi), Monroe (9%, 8 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Sultan walkable?
Sultan is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Sultan without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sultan, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sultan
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.