Work & commute · Chico

Work & commute in Chico, CA

53% of Chico’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Oroville (5%), Sacramento (2%) and Durham (2%). Half commute less than 4 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

53%

19,626 of 36,696 working residents

Typical commute

4 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

14%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 17,070 Chico residents head out of town to work, 19,626 work right here, and 21,342 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Chico.

17,070live here, work elsewhere

19,626live and work here

21,342work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Chico goes to work

Chico (in town)right here

53%19,626

Oroville22.8 mi away

5%1,687

Sacramento84.4 mi away

2%831

Durham8.8 mi away

2%716

Yuba City44.5 mi away

1%490

Paradise11.2 mi away

1%462

Redding63.1 mi away

1%428

Butte Valley11.1 mi away

1%422

San Francisco154.9 mi away

1%413

Roseville73.3 mi away

1%318

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%11,303

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

How far

How far Chico commutes

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

58%

11%

25%

58%Under 10 mi

11%10–24 mi

6%25–50 mi

25%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Chico is balanced between jobs and homes

1.12jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.12 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Chico are

40,968 jobs are based in Chico. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Chico’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Chico

40,968 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)73%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month54%

Jobs Chico residents hold

36,696 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)13%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)69%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month58%

+9%

Jobs based in Chico, 2013 → 2023: 37,440 → 40,968. 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.