Work & commute · Lorain

Work & commute in Lorain, OH

Most working residents leave Lorain for work: only 15% work in town. The top destinations are Elyria (10%), Cleveland (8%) and Avon (5%). Half commute less than 12 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

15%

3,827 of 26,091 working residents

Typical commute

12 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

25 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 22,264 Lorain residents head out of town to work, 3,827 work right here, and 9,751 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Lorain.

22,264live here, work elsewhere

3,827live and work here

9,751work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Lorain goes to work

Lorain (in town)right here

15%3,827

Elyria5.8 mi away

10%2,690

Cleveland26 mi away

8%2,158

Avon9.1 mi away

5%1,364

Amherst3.6 mi away

5%1,186

Westlake12.9 mi away

4%1,025

Avon Lake9.3 mi away

3%902

Columbus108.9 mi away

2%497

North Ridgeville8.9 mi away

2%496

Sheffield4.6 mi away

2%443

Everywhere elseother towns and states

44%11,503

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

How far

How far Lorain commutes

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

45%

23%

18%

14%

45%Under 10 mi

23%10–24 mi

18%25–50 mi

14%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Lorain is a commuter town

0.52jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Lorain are

13,578 jobs are based in Lorain. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lorain’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Lorain

13,578 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)8%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)71%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month33%

Over $3,333 a month52%

Jobs Lorain residents hold

26,091 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)22%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)58%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month49%

−6%

Jobs based in Lorain, 2013 → 2023: 14,372 → 13,578. 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.