Work & commute · Isla Vista

Work & commute in Isla Vista, CA

Most working residents leave Isla Vista for work: only 5% work in town. The top destinations are Santa Barbara (17%), Goleta (12%) and Los Angeles (7%). Half commute less than 39 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

159 of 3,023 working residents

Typical commute

39 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

16 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 2,864 Isla Vista residents head out of town to work, 159 work right here, and 699 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Isla Vista.

2,864live here, work elsewhere

159live and work here

699work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Isla Vista goes to work

Santa Barbara8.4 mi away

17%508

Goleta1.6 mi away

12%376

Los Angeles87.2 mi away

7%223

University of California-Santa Barbara0.9 mi away

7%205

Isla Vista (in town)right here

5%159

Eastern Goleta Valley5.1 mi away

2%69

Oxnard40.1 mi away

2%59

San Buenaventura (Ventura)36 mi away

2%54

San Diego191.8 mi away

2%47

Thousand Oaks58.3 mi away

2%46

Everywhere elseother towns and states

42%1,277

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

How far

How far Isla Vista commutes

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

42%

45%

42%Under 10 mi

6%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

45%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Isla Vista is a commuter town

0.28jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.28 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Isla Vista are

858 jobs are based in Isla Vista. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Isla Vista’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Isla Vista

858 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)4%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)80%

$1,250 a month or less44%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month28%

Jobs Isla Vista residents hold

3,023 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)12%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)71%

$1,250 a month or less24%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month47%

+19%

Jobs based in Isla Vista, 2013 → 2023: 724 → 858. 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.