Work & commute · Oak Lawn

Work & commute in Oak Lawn, IL

Most working residents leave Oak Lawn for work: only 7% work in town. The top destinations are Chicago (36%), Bedford Park (2%) and Alsip (2%). Half commute less than 12 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times
Work in town
7%
1,819 of 25,323 working residents
Typical commute
12 mi
Half commute less than this, straight-line
Average commute time
31 min
One way, from the Census survey
Work from home
11%
of workers, from the Census survey
Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 23,504 Oak Lawn residents head out of town to work, 1,819 work right here, and 18,265 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Oak Lawn.

23,504live here, work elsewhere
1,819live and work here
18,265work here, live elsewhere
Leave for workStayCome in
The map

Where Oak Lawn goes to work

HometownChicago RidgeEvergreen ParkBurbankBridgeviewOak ForestBedford ParkAlsipOak BrookOak LawnDowners GroveTinley ParkOrland ParkChicagoJolietStickneyWorthChicagoBedford ParkAlsipBridgeviewOrland ParkOak BrookDowners GroveEvergreen ParkChicago RidgeOak Lawn
1
Chicago9.2 mi away
36%9,083
2
Oak Lawn (in town)right here
7%1,819
3
Bedford Park3.9 mi away
2%589
4
Alsip3.1 mi away
2%403
5
Bridgeview3.3 mi away
1%372
6
Orland Park9.1 mi away
1%372
7
Oak Brook13.4 mi away
1%350
8
Downers Grove14.9 mi away
1%341
9
Evergreen Park2.7 mi away
1%336
10
Chicago Ridge1.6 mi away
1%266
Everywhere elseother towns and states
45%11,392

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

How far

How far Oak Lawn commutes

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

39%Under 10 mi
49%10–24 mi
8%25–50 mi
4%Over 50 mi
Job hub or commuter town?

Oak Lawn is balanced between jobs and homes

0.79jobs per working resident
Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.79 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Oak Lawn are

20,084 jobs are based in Oak Lawn. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Oak Lawn’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Oak Lawn

20,084 jobs
Goods (factories, building, farms)4%
Trade, transport & utilities17%
Services (health, schools, offices…)79%
$1,250 a month or less19%
$1,251–$3,333 a month31%
Over $3,333 a month50%

Jobs Oak Lawn residents hold

25,323 working residents
Goods (factories, building, farms)14%
Trade, transport & utilities23%
Services (health, schools, offices…)63%
$1,250 a month or less12%
$1,251–$3,333 a month24%
Over $3,333 a month64%
−2%

Jobs based in Oak Lawn, 2013 → 2023: 20,597 → 20,084. 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.

The porch light’s on

Where to, neighbor?

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01