Work & commute · Kinston

Work & commute in Kinston, NC

About one in 3 of Kinston’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Raleigh (5%), Greenville (5%) and Goldsboro (3%). Half commute less than 15 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

35%

2,736 of 7,878 working residents

Typical commute

15 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 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 5,142 Kinston residents head out of town to work, 2,736 work right here, and 15,759 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Kinston.

5,142live here, work elsewhere

2,736live and work here

15,759work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Kinston goes to work

Kinston (in town)right here

35%2,736

Raleigh70.3 mi away

5%417

Greenville25.4 mi away

5%382

Goldsboro22.5 mi away

3%261

Charlotte182.7 mi away

2%162

Wilson36.8 mi away

2%120

Durham87.9 mi away

1%112

Rocky Mount49.4 mi away

1%105

Greensboro137.4 mi away

1%78

Cary77.6 mi away

1%71

Everywhere elseother towns and states

44%3,434

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

How far

How far Kinston commutes

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

47%

12%

14%

27%

47%Under 10 mi

12%10–24 mi

14%25–50 mi

27%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Kinston is a job hub

2.35jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Kinston are

18,495 jobs are based in Kinston. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Kinston’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Kinston

18,495 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)32%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)51%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month40%

Over $3,333 a month45%

Jobs Kinston residents hold

7,878 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)25%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)57%

$1,250 a month or less20%

$1,251–$3,333 a month41%

Over $3,333 a month39%

+23%

Jobs based in Kinston, 2013 → 2023: 15,034 → 18,495. 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.