Work & commute · Southbridge

Work & commute in Southbridge, MA

About one in 5 of Southbridge’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Worcester (13%), Sturbridge (6%) and Boston (5%). Half commute less than 18 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

20%

1,697 of 8,622 working residents

Typical commute

18 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

28 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 6,925 Southbridge residents head out of town to work, 1,697 work right here, and 3,813 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Southbridge.

6,925live here, work elsewhere

1,697live and work here

3,813work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Southbridge goes to work

Southbridge Town (in town)right here

20%1,697

Worcester18.6 mi away

13%1,095

Sturbridge4.2 mi away

6%515

Boston55.5 mi away

5%389

Charlton6.1 mi away

4%357

Dudley5.1 mi away

3%250

Webster9.7 mi away

3%237

Auburn13.6 mi away

3%223

Oxford9.8 mi away

2%146

Marlborough32 mi away

2%142

Everywhere elseother towns and states

41%3,571

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

How far

How far Southbridge commutes

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

38%

26%

21%

16%

38%Under 10 mi

26%10–24 mi

21%25–50 mi

16%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Southbridge is a commuter town

0.64jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.64 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Southbridge are

5,510 jobs are based in Southbridge. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Southbridge’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Southbridge

5,510 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)23%

Trade, transport & utilities11%

Services (health, schools, offices…)66%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month27%

Over $3,333 a month60%

Jobs Southbridge residents hold

8,622 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)21%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)61%

$1,250 a month or less12%

$1,251–$3,333 a month27%

Over $3,333 a month61%

+6%

Jobs based in Southbridge, 2013 → 2023: 5,215 → 5,510. 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.