Work & commute · Lancaster

Work & commute in Lancaster, OH

About one in 4 of Lancaster’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Columbus (22%), Greenfield (3%) and Canal Winchester (2%). Half commute less than 22 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

26%

4,644 of 17,942 working residents

Typical commute

22 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 13,298 Lancaster residents head out of town to work, 4,644 work right here, and 12,754 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Lancaster.

13,298live here, work elsewhere

4,644live and work here

12,754work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Lancaster goes to work

Lancaster (in town)right here

26%4,644

Columbus27 mi away

22%3,979

Greenfield5.2 mi away

3%475

Canal Winchester14.2 mi away

2%354

Groveport17.7 mi away

2%270

Dublin39.2 mi away

1%249

Grove City26.4 mi away

1%237

Newark25.8 mi away

1%234

Westerville32 mi away

1%221

Gahanna25.9 mi away

1%218

Everywhere elseother towns and states

39%7,061

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

How far

How far Lancaster commutes

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

32%

24%

29%

15%

32%Under 10 mi

24%10–24 mi

29%25–50 mi

15%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Lancaster is balanced between jobs and homes

0.97jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.97 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Lancaster are

17,398 jobs are based in Lancaster. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lancaster’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Lancaster

17,398 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month50%

Jobs Lancaster residents hold

17,942 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities22%

Services (health, schools, offices…)61%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month58%

−4%

Jobs based in Lancaster, 2013 → 2023: 18,198 → 17,398. 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.