Work & commute · Laurel

Work & commute in Laurel, MS

46% of Laurel’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Hattiesburg (8%), Ellisville (3%) and Jackson (2%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

46%

2,780 of 6,005 working residents

Typical commute

5 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 3,225 Laurel residents head out of town to work, 2,780 work right here, and 15,523 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Laurel.

3,225live here, work elsewhere

2,780live and work here

15,523work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Laurel goes to work

Laurel (in town)right here

46%2,780

Hattiesburg28.2 mi away

8%467

Ellisville7.4 mi away

3%210

Jackson75.9 mi away

2%129

Collins24.8 mi away

2%95

Meridian55 mi away

1%82

Petal24.2 mi away

1%81

Gulfport87.9 mi away

1%75

Bay Springs21.3 mi away

1%73

Pascagoula98.3 mi away

1%69

Everywhere elseother towns and states

32%1,944

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

How far

How far Laurel commutes

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

55%

13%

24%

55%Under 10 mi

7%10–24 mi

13%25–50 mi

24%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Laurel is a job hub

3.05jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Laurel are

18,303 jobs are based in Laurel. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Laurel’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Laurel

18,303 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)44%

Trade, transport & utilities15%

Services (health, schools, offices…)41%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month38%

Over $3,333 a month43%

Jobs Laurel residents hold

6,005 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)37%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)46%

$1,250 a month or less20%

$1,251–$3,333 a month41%

Over $3,333 a month39%

+1%

Jobs based in Laurel, 2013 → 2023: 18,043 → 18,303. 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.