Work & commute · James Island

Work & commute in James Island, SC

Most working residents leave James Island for work: only 4% work in town. The top destinations are Charleston (43%), North Charleston (14%) and Mount Pleasant (9%). Half commute less than 7 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

208 of 5,470 working residents

Typical commute

7 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

23 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

18%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 5,262 James Island residents head out of town to work, 208 work right here, and 1,894 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in James Island.

5,262live here, work elsewhere

208live and work here

1,894work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where James Island goes to work

Charleston6.7 mi away

43%2,330

North Charleston14.6 mi away

14%761

Mount Pleasant6.5 mi away

9%493

James Island (in town)right here

4%208

Columbia105.8 mi away

2%112

Folly Beach4.8 mi away

2%95

Greenville201.2 mi away

1%67

Kiawah Island10.9 mi away

1%53

Goose Creek18.4 mi away

1%49

Summerville23.3 mi away

1%48

Everywhere elseother towns and states

23%1,254

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

How far

How far James Island commutes

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

64%

18%

16%

64%Under 10 mi

18%10–24 mi

2%25–50 mi

16%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

James Island is a commuter town

0.38jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in James Island are

2,102 jobs are based in James Island. Here is what they are, next to the jobs James Island’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in James Island

2,102 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)9%

Trade, transport & utilities12%

Services (health, schools, offices…)78%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month55%

Jobs James Island residents hold

5,470 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)74%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month19%

Over $3,333 a month68%

+35%

Jobs based in James Island, 2013 → 2023: 1,555 → 2,102. 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.