Work & commute · Upper

Work & commute in Upper, OH

About one in 4 of Upper’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Ironton (20%), Ashland (13%) and Huntington (6%). Half commute less than 9 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

23%

1,350 of 5,819 working residents

Typical commute

9 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

22 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 4,469 Upper residents head out of town to work, 1,350 work right here, and 3,544 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Upper.

4,469live here, work elsewhere

1,350live and work here

3,544work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Upper goes to work

Ironton1.3 mi away

20%1,144

Ashland, KY5.7 mi away

13%771

Huntington, WV15 mi away

6%328

Portsmouth21.5 mi away

4%218

Columbus101.3 mi away

3%156

Coal Grove3.6 mi away

3%148

Elizabeth5.9 mi away

2%126

South Point9.2 mi away

2%92

Upper (in town)right here

2%88

Russell, KY2.9 mi away

1%72

Everywhere elseother towns and states

46%2,676

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

How far

How far Upper commutes

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

52%

18%

26%

52%Under 10 mi

18%10–24 mi

4%25–50 mi

26%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Upper is balanced between jobs and homes

0.84jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.84 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Upper are

4,894 jobs are based in Upper. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Upper’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Upper

4,894 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)18%

Trade, transport & utilities10%

Services (health, schools, offices…)72%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month38%

Over $3,333 a month45%

Jobs Upper residents hold

5,819 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)68%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month35%

Over $3,333 a month49%

+27%

Jobs based in Upper, 2013 → 2023: 3,847 → 4,894. 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.