Work & commute · Newton

Work & commute in Newton, MA

Most working residents leave Newton for work: only 12% work in town. The top destinations are Boston (35%), Cambridge (9%) and Waltham (5%). Half commute less than 7 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

12%

4,693 of 38,152 working residents

Typical commute

7 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

27 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

32%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 33,459 Newton residents head out of town to work, 4,693 work right here, and 41,198 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Newton.

33,459live here, work elsewhere

4,693live and work here

41,198work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Newton goes to work

Boston10 mi away

35%13,468

Newton (in town)right here

12%4,693

Cambridge5.5 mi away

9%3,575

Waltham4.3 mi away

5%1,844

Needham3.9 mi away

2%638

Brookline3.4 mi away

2%636

Wellesley4.2 mi away

2%600

Framingham11.8 mi away

2%597

Watertown3 mi away

2%595

Burlington11.9 mi away

1%564

Everywhere elseother towns and states

29%10,942

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

How far

How far Newton commutes

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

77%

15%

77%Under 10 mi

15%10–24 mi

3%25–50 mi

4%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Newton is balanced between jobs and homes

1.20jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.20 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Newton are

45,891 jobs are based in Newton. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Newton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Newton

45,891 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)5%

Trade, transport & utilities12%

Services (health, schools, offices…)83%

$1,250 a month or less12%

$1,251–$3,333 a month16%

Over $3,333 a month71%

Jobs Newton residents hold

38,152 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)5%

Trade, transport & utilities10%

Services (health, schools, offices…)84%

$1,250 a month or less10%

$1,251–$3,333 a month11%

Over $3,333 a month79%

−6%

Jobs based in Newton, 2013 → 2023: 48,770 → 45,891. 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.