Work & commute · Tempe

Work & commute in Tempe, AZ

About one in 4 of Tempe’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Phoenix (34%), Scottsdale (9%) and Chandler (9%). Half commute less than 8 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

25%

19,658 of 79,858 working residents

Typical commute

8 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

21%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 60,200 Tempe residents head out of town to work, 19,658 work right here, and 212,459 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Tempe.

60,200live here, work elsewhere

19,658live and work here

212,459work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Tempe goes to work

Phoenix15.6 mi away

34%27,453

Tempe (in town)right here

25%19,658

Scottsdale20.8 mi away

9%7,182

Chandler8.6 mi away

9%6,862

Mesa12.5 mi away

7%5,854

Gilbert12.1 mi away

3%2,714

Tucson105.3 mi away

1%1,095

Glendale17.9 mi away

1%852

Peoria36.7 mi away

0%331

Goodyear26.8 mi away

0%326

Everywhere elseother towns and states

9%7,531

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

How far

How far Tempe commutes

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

61%

31%

61%Under 10 mi

31%10–24 mi

2%25–50 mi

5%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Tempe is a job hub

2.91jobs per working resident

A job hub

2.9 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Tempe are

232,117 jobs are based in Tempe. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Tempe’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Tempe

232,117 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less10%

$1,251–$3,333 a month21%

Over $3,333 a month70%

Jobs Tempe residents hold

79,858 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)13%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)68%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month64%

+33%

Jobs based in Tempe, 2013 → 2023: 174,203 → 232,117. 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.