Work & commute · Paducah

Work & commute in Paducah, KY

53% of Paducah’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Mayfield (2%), Calvert City (2%) and Murray (2%). Half commute less than 4 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

53%

5,460 of 10,294 working residents

Typical commute

4 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 4,834 Paducah residents head out of town to work, 5,460 work right here, and 23,639 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Paducah.

4,834live here, work elsewhere

5,460live and work here

23,639work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Paducah goes to work

Paducah (in town)right here

53%5,460

Mayfield23 mi away

2%214

Calvert City13.8 mi away

2%197

Murray36.2 mi away

2%159

Hendron2.6 mi away

1%152

Metropolis, IL5.9 mi away

1%140

Farley4.4 mi away

1%133

Lexington-Fayette urban county238.9 mi away

1%123

Hopkinsville66.6 mi away

1%94

Bowling Green122.1 mi away

1%91

Everywhere elseother towns and states

34%3,531

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

How far

How far Paducah commutes

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

66%

10%

19%

66%Under 10 mi

10%10–24 mi

5%25–50 mi

19%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Paducah is a job hub

2.83jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Paducah are

29,099 jobs are based in Paducah. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Paducah’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Paducah

29,099 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)7%

Trade, transport & utilities29%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month49%

Jobs Paducah residents hold

10,294 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)63%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month48%

+13%

Jobs based in Paducah, 2013 → 2023: 25,850 → 29,099. 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.