Work & commute · Decatur

Work & commute in Decatur, AL

About one in 3 of Decatur’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Huntsville (21%), Madison (3%) and Athens (3%). Half commute less than 12 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

33%

7,343 of 22,335 working residents

Typical commute

12 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 14,992 Decatur residents head out of town to work, 7,343 work right here, and 23,782 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Decatur.

14,992live here, work elsewhere

7,343live and work here

23,782work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Decatur goes to work

Decatur (in town)right here

33%7,343

Huntsville19.8 mi away

21%4,722

Madison16.1 mi away

3%719

Athens14.7 mi away

3%604

Hartselle9.6 mi away

2%524

Birmingham73.1 mi away

2%470

Florence42.1 mi away

2%343

Montgomery159.2 mi away

1%234

Cullman28.7 mi away

1%213

Trinity5.5 mi away

1%187

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%6,976

Lines run between town centers; a thicker line means more commuters. The top 10 towns each way.

How far

How far Decatur commutes

Straight-line distance from home to work, for every working resident. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

47%

25%

12%

16%

47%Under 10 mi

25%10–24 mi

12%25–50 mi

16%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Decatur is balanced between jobs and homes

1.39jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.39 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Decatur are

31,125 jobs are based in Decatur. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Decatur’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Decatur

31,125 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)23%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)57%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month55%

Jobs Decatur residents hold

22,335 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)30%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)50%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month55%

+8%

Jobs based in Decatur, 2013 → 2023: 28,809 → 31,125. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

About these numbers

How to read this page

Every worker, home to workThe Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.

Where the employer saysA job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.

Two surveysFlows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.