Work & commute · Johnston

Work & commute in Johnston, RI

Most working residents leave Johnston for work: only 11% work in town. The top destinations are Providence (22%), Cranston (9%) and Warwick (8%). Half commute less than 7 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

11%

1,550 of 14,220 working residents

Typical commute

7 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

24 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

10%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 12,670 Johnston residents head out of town to work, 1,550 work right here, and 15,288 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Johnston.

12,670live here, work elsewhere

1,550live and work here

15,288work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Johnston goes to work

Providence5.2 mi away

22%3,144

Johnston (in town)right here

11%1,550

Cranston4.4 mi away

9%1,316

Warwick10 mi away

8%1,204

Smithfield5.1 mi away

4%594

East Providence8.5 mi away

4%518

Lincoln7.1 mi away

3%454

Pawtucket8.2 mi away

3%408

North Kingstown18 mi away

3%393

North Providence4 mi away

2%333

Everywhere elseother towns and states

30%4,306

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

How far

How far Johnston commutes

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

69%

19%

69%Under 10 mi

19%10–24 mi

8%25–50 mi

3%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Johnston is balanced between jobs and homes

1.18jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.18 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Johnston are

16,838 jobs are based in Johnston. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Johnston’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Johnston

16,838 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)73%

$1,250 a month or less12%

$1,251–$3,333 a month25%

Over $3,333 a month64%

Jobs Johnston residents hold

14,220 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)15%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)66%

$1,250 a month or less12%

$1,251–$3,333 a month25%

Over $3,333 a month63%

+53%

Jobs based in Johnston, 2013 → 2023: 10,975 → 16,838. 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.