Work & commute · Reading

Work & commute in Reading, PA

Most working residents leave Reading for work: only 15% work in town. The top destinations are Muhlenberg (8%), Maxatawny (5%) and Wyomissing (4%). Half commute less than 12 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

15%

5,147 of 34,519 working residents

Typical commute

12 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

24 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 29,372 Reading residents head out of town to work, 5,147 work right here, and 19,909 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Reading.

29,372live here, work elsewhere

5,147live and work here

19,909work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Reading goes to work

Reading (in town)right here

15%5,147

Muhlenberg3.9 mi away

8%2,612

Maxatawny16 mi away

5%1,626

Wyomissing2.1 mi away

4%1,436

West Reading1.1 mi away

3%1,183

Upper Macungie22.4 mi away

3%1,035

Spring6 mi away

3%904

Philadelphia47.7 mi away

3%888

Exeter5.1 mi away

2%777

Maidencreek8.9 mi away

2%699

Everywhere elseother towns and states

53%18,212

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

How far

How far Reading commutes

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

47%

22%

20%

11%

47%Under 10 mi

22%10–24 mi

20%25–50 mi

11%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Reading is a commuter town

0.73jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Reading are

25,056 jobs are based in Reading. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Reading’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Reading

25,056 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)24%

Trade, transport & utilities11%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month22%

Over $3,333 a month65%

Jobs Reading residents hold

34,519 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)29%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)48%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month35%

Over $3,333 a month50%

−13%

Jobs based in Reading, 2013 → 2023: 28,730 → 25,056. 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.