Work & commute · Altoona

Work & commute in Altoona, PA

About one in 3 of Altoona’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Logan (9%), Allegheny (7%) and Hollidaysburg (3%). Half commute less than 6 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

30%

5,233 of 17,495 working residents

Typical commute

6 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 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 12,262 Altoona residents head out of town to work, 5,233 work right here, and 12,832 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Altoona.

12,262live here, work elsewhere

5,233live and work here

12,832work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Altoona goes to work

Altoona (in town)right here

30%5,233

Logan1.9 mi away

9%1,655

Allegheny5.5 mi away

7%1,268

Hollidaysburg5.3 mi away

3%534

Antis9.4 mi away

3%527

Greenfield14.6 mi away

2%418

College37.2 mi away

2%410

Blair7.1 mi away

2%268

Pittsburgh82.9 mi away

1%262

Snyder15.7 mi away

1%173

Everywhere elseother towns and states

39%6,747

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

How far

How far Altoona commutes

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

56%

12%

11%

21%

56%Under 10 mi

12%10–24 mi

11%25–50 mi

21%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Altoona is balanced between jobs and homes

1.03jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.03 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Altoona are

18,065 jobs are based in Altoona. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Altoona’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Altoona

18,065 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)11%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)74%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month52%

Jobs Altoona residents hold

17,495 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)63%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month49%

−15%

Jobs based in Altoona, 2013 → 2023: 21,333 → 18,065. 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.