Work & commute · Boston

Work & commute in Boston, MA

55% of Boston’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Cambridge (7%), Newton (2%) and Waltham (2%). Half commute less than 4 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

55%

172,759 of 314,664 working residents

Typical commute

4 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

30 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

21%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 141,905 Boston residents head out of town to work, 172,759 work right here, and 490,140 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Boston.

141,905live here, work elsewhere

172,759live and work here

490,140work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Boston goes to work

Boston (in town)right here

55%172,759

Cambridge6.1 mi away

7%22,825

Newton10 mi away

2%7,271

Waltham12.3 mi away

2%6,610

Quincy5 mi away

2%5,233

Somerville6 mi away

2%5,152

Brookline6.6 mi away

2%4,721

Needham12.2 mi away

1%3,124

Burlington15.2 mi away

1%2,963

Braintree Town8.8 mi away

1%2,772

Everywhere elseother towns and states

26%81,234

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

How far

How far Boston commutes

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

79%

14%

79%Under 10 mi

14%10–24 mi

4%25–50 mi

3%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Boston is a job hub

2.11jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Boston are

662,899 jobs are based in Boston. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Boston’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Boston

662,899 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)3%

Trade, transport & utilities10%

Services (health, schools, offices…)87%

$1,250 a month or less8%

$1,251–$3,333 a month12%

Over $3,333 a month80%

Jobs Boston residents hold

314,664 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)5%

Trade, transport & utilities12%

Services (health, schools, offices…)83%

$1,250 a month or less11%

$1,251–$3,333 a month17%

Over $3,333 a month72%

+21%

Jobs based in Boston, 2013 → 2023: 548,565 → 662,899. 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.