Wauna has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
There are 539 jobs in Wauna for 1,826 working residents. Jobs and income earn Wauna A−; getting around on foot earns it C+. Household incomes here are higher than in 79% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Wauna apart
The better-paid jobs are outside Wauna
69% of Wauna residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 49% of the jobs based in Wauna pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Wauna is a place people come home to
There are 539 jobs based in Wauna, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Wauna has about 3,500 people in it, 27% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
33% of the jobs based in Wauna are held by workers 29 or younger, against 20% of Wauna’s own working residents. The jobs ↓
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.
Inside Wauna’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Wauna is better than 75% of U.S. towns, #94 of 285 in Washington. Household income is its strongest input ($103,250, U.S. $80,734); job access by car ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (ahead of 55% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate and unemployment and job access by car.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Wauna could be anywhere from C+ to A+.
Jobs in Wauna: what the 539 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wauna, 2013 → 2023: 215 → 539. 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 Wauna’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Wauna on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,783 residents head out to work, 43 work right here, and 496 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,500 people are in Wauna on a workday afternoon, 27% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
14% of working residents work in Tacoma
Where Wauna clocks in
12% of workers
8% 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.
Getting to work from Wauna takes about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wauna workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,863 commuters (the 16% 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.
Half of Wauna commutes less than 18 miles
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.
Few in Wauna walk, bike or ride to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Wauna is more walkable than 40% of U.S. towns, #236 of 285 in Washington. Both inputs place Wauna 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 2,215 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). 1.0% of Wauna households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Wauna’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Wauna ranks: 991st of 3,753 U.S. towns of 3,400 to 6,500
| # | 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 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 15 | Larch Way WA | 4,424 | $160K | 1.6% | 0.4% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 159 | Lake Holm WA | 3,555 | $177K | 1.1% | 3.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 233 | Maple Heights-Lake Desire WA | 4,113 | $143K | 6.0% | 1.3% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 989 | Litchfield ME | 3,797 | $85K | 4.3% | 2.2% | 8% | A− |
| 990 | Rye NH | 5,689 | $141K | 6.9% | 4.2% | 7% | A− |
| 991 | Wauna WA | 4,805 | $103K | 6.0% | 3.7% | 2% | A− |
| 992 | Becker MN | 5,425 | $86K | 9.5% | 1.1% | 12% | B+ |
| 993 | Saltillo MS | 5,060 | $81K | 6.8% | 1.3% | 3% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,753 | 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 Wauna, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
How Wauna compares with the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Wauna workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wauna | – | A− | C+ | 29 min | $103,250 |
| Stansberry Lake | under 3% | A− | D− | 44 min | $90,917 |
| Key Center | under 3% | B− | C | 36 min | $105,781 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Wauna’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 Wauna: questions
What is the median household income in Wauna?
$103,250 (±$23,019) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wauna?
6.0%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wauna?
29 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wauna work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Tacoma (14%, 13 mi), Seattle (12%, 22 mi), Gig Harbor (8%, 5 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Wauna walkable?
Wauna is more walkable than 40% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.5 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Wauna without a car?
1% 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 Wauna, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wauna
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.