Households in Three Lakes have higher incomes than those in 97% of U.S. towns
Hardly any stay in Three Lakes for work; outside it, Seattle is the main destination (14%, 28 miles). The poverty rate is 6.3%, against 9.9% across Washington. Three Lakes grades A for jobs and income and D− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Three Lakes in brief
Three Lakes workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 40 minutes each way, against 27 across Washington. Over a year that’s about 307 hours of commuting, 100 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Three Lakes is a place people come home to
There are 195 jobs based in Three Lakes, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Three Lakes has about 2,500 people in it, 38% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Three Lakes’ biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Three Lakes is Seattle, 28 miles away as the crow flies. 14% of working residents (249) 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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Three Lakes
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Three Lakes is better than 88% of U.S. towns, #45 of 285 in Washington. Household income holds Three Lakes’ grade up ($172,879, U.S. $80,734); job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 47% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Three Lakes could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
Three Lakes’ commute takes about 40 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Three Lakes workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,659 commuters (the 18% 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.
How a workday changes Three Lakes
On a workday 1,726 residents head out to work, 9 work right here, and 186 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,500 people are in Three Lakes on a workday afternoon, 38% fewer than live here.
0.11 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Three Lakes
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.
Where people from Three Lakes work
Where Three Lakes clocks in
14% of workers
14% of workers
6% 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.
Three Lakes makes things: 46% of its jobs are in goods
195 jobs are based in Three Lakes.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Three Lakes, 2013 → 2023: 131 → 195. 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 Three Lakes’s own residents hold wherever they work.
For most of Three Lakes, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Three Lakes is more walkable than 3% of U.S. towns, #281 of 285 in Washington. Both inputs place Three Lakes 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 2,032 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 1.2% of Three Lakes households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Three Lakes’ commuters take a bus or train.
Three Lakes places 512th of 4,283 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 2,800 to 5,500
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Larch Way WA | 4,424 | $160K | 1.6% | 0.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Clearview WA | 3,254 | $193K | 2.6% | 0.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 112 | Medina WA | 2,974 | $250K | 4.7% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 510 | Fond du Lac WI | 3,780 | $106K | 4.7% | 2.6% | 1% | A |
| 511 | Shelby WI | 4,668 | $110K | 6.4% | 1.3% | 2% | A |
| 512 | Three Lakes WA | 4,055 | $173K | 6.3% | 1.5% | 1% | A |
| 513 | Larkin Township MI | 5,390 | $143K | 2.7% | 2.8% | 2% | A |
| 514 | Greenwich Township PA | 3,496 | $103K | 7.7% | 0.8% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 4,283 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Three Lakes, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
Work in the towns next to Three Lakes
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Three Lakes workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Three Lakes | – | A | D− | 40 min | $172,879 |
| Chain Lake | under 2% | A | C+ | 38 min | $161,286 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Three Lakes’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 Three Lakes: questions
What is the median household income in Three Lakes?
$172,879 (±$34,462) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Three Lakes?
6.3%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Three Lakes?
40 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Three Lakes work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Seattle (14%, 28 mi), Everett (14%, 9 mi), Snohomish (6%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Three Lakes walkable?
Three Lakes is more walkable than 3% of U.S. towns (Walkability D−): an EPA walkability index of 3.9 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Three Lakes without a car?
0% 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 Three Lakes, from the people who make the trip.
More of Three Lakes
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.