Work & commute · Hickory

Work & commute in Hickory, KY

Most working residents leave Hickory for work: only 1% work in town. The top destinations are Paducah (30%), Mayfield (14%) and Benton (5%). Half commute less than 17 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

1 of 102 working residents

Typical commute

17 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

— 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 101 Hickory residents head out of town to work, 1 work right here, and 237 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Hickory.

101live here, work elsewhere

1live and work here

237work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Hickory goes to work

Paducah17.5 mi away

30%31

Mayfield5.5 mi away

14%14

Benton16 mi away

5%5

Calvert City21.1 mi away

4%4

Lexington-Fayette urban county244.9 mi away

3%3

Metropolis, IL23.1 mi away

2%2

Hopkinsville65 mi away

2%2

Avon, IN237.2 mi away

1%1

Kevil22.5 mi away

1%1

Bardwell20.4 mi away

1%1

Everywhere elseother towns and states

37%38

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

How far

How far Hickory commutes

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

31%

51%

15%

31%Under 10 mi

51%10–24 mi

3%25–50 mi

15%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Hickory is a job hub

2.33jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Hickory are

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

Jobs based in Hickory

238 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)39%

Trade, transport & utilities14%

Services (health, schools, offices…)47%

$1,250 a month or less2%

$1,251–$3,333 a month20%

Over $3,333 a month78%

Jobs Hickory residents hold

102 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)54%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month54%

−13%

Jobs based in Hickory, 2013 → 2023: 272 → 238. 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.