Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0Work means Seattle for about half of White Center’s working residents
Commuters spend 30 minutes getting to work on average; the Washington average is 27, the U.S. 26. Only 2% stay in White Center for work; outside it, Seattle is the main destination (46%, 8 miles). Household incomes here are higher than in 65% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in White Center, in brief
Short distances, slow trips
Half of White Center’s working residents have a job less than 7 miles away, yet the average commute still takes 30 minutes, longer than the Washington average of 27. Time on the road ↓
Most White Center residents work close to home
66% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. Only 4% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
A longer commute than the towns next door
White Center averages 30 minutes each way, more than any bordering town (24 to 27 minutes). Next door ↓
White Center is a place people come home to
There are 1,976 jobs based in White Center, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday White Center has about 9,600 people in it, 35% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
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.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for White Center
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, White Center is better than 61% of U.S. towns, #154 of 285 in Washington. Job access by car holds White Center’s grade up (ahead of 93% of U.S. towns); the poverty rate pulls it down (14.5%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on household income.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, White Center could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
The trip to work from White Center: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of White Center workers work from home, vs 20% across Washington. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,432 commuters (the 19% 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 many miles White Center commutes
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.
Who works in White Center, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 7,105 residents head out to work, 112 work right here, and 1,864 people come in from elsewhere.
About 9,600 people are in White Center on a workday afternoon, 35% fewer than live here.
0.27 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 out of White Center: the destinations
Where White Center clocks in
46% 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.
Jobs in White Center: what the 1,976 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in White Center, 2014 → 2024: 1,598 → 1,976. 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 White Center’s own residents hold wherever they work.
White Center 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 7,990 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). Nearly all residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 49% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 23.2 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 98% 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). 14.7% of White Center households have no vehicle (Washington 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 9% of White Center’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, White Center is 1,241st among 2,362 U.S. towns of 10,000 to 20,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 43 | Maltby WA | 10,910 | $185K | 3.9% | 1.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 105 | Bothell East WA | 14,578 | $199K | 3.6% | 2.8% | <1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 131 | Snoqualmie WA | 13,640 | $214K | 0.8% | 2.6% | 8% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,239 | Sullivan NY | 14,623 | $81K | 8.2% | 3.9% | 9% | B |
| 1,240 | Timberlake VA | 12,725 | $76K | 8.5% | 3.4% | 6% | B |
| 1,241 | White Center WA | 14,886 | $87K | 14.5% | 4.9% | 2% | B |
| 1,242 | Fernandina Beach FL | 13,869 | $98K | 11.3% | 2.7% | 29% | B |
| 1,243 | Groveland Township IL | 18,418 | $66K | 11.1% | 2.7% | 3% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,362 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 28% | 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 White Center, the top three, the last and three more from Washington.
50% of White Center works in a bordering town
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | White Center workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White Center | – | B | A+ | 30 min | $87,189 |
| Seattle | 46% | A− | A+ | 26 min | $123,860 |
| Burien | 4% | B | A+ | 27 min | $91,318 |
| Boulevard Park | under 2% | B− | A | 24 min | $78,954 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Seattle. Darker towns draw more of White Center’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 White Center: questions
What is the median household income in White Center?
$87,189 (±$11,786) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $98,141 across Washington and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in White Center?
14.5%, against 9.9% across Washington and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from White Center?
30 minutes each way on average, against 27 across Washington and 26 nationally. 20% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in White Center work?
2% work in town.
Is White Center walkable?
White Center 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 White Center without a car?
9% of commuters take transit and 15% of households have no car. 49% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from White Center, from the people who make the trip.
More of White Center
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.