Work & commute · Jefferson

Work & commute in Jefferson, TN

Most working residents leave Jefferson for work: only 14% work in town. The top destinations are Morristown (18%), Knoxville (16%) and Sevierville (5%). Half commute less than 19 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

14%

481 of 3,427 working residents

Typical commute

19 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

27 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 2,946 Jefferson residents head out of town to work, 481 work right here, and 4,561 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Jefferson.

2,946live here, work elsewhere

481live and work here

4,561work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Jefferson goes to work

Morristown11.6 mi away

18%604

Knoxville28.2 mi away

16%559

Jefferson City (in town)right here

14%481

Sevierville16.9 mi away

5%173

Dandridge6.9 mi away

5%170

Pigeon Forge22.8 mi away

3%93

Chattanooga123.2 mi away

1%50

Newport19.2 mi away

1%49

White Pine10.9 mi away

1%43

Maryville38.1 mi away

1%38

Everywhere elseother towns and states

34%1,167

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

How far

How far Jefferson commutes

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

30%

25%

15%

30%Under 10 mi

30%10–24 mi

25%25–50 mi

15%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Jefferson is balanced between jobs and homes

1.47jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.47 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Jefferson are

5,042 jobs are based in Jefferson. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Jefferson’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Jefferson

5,042 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)20%

Trade, transport & utilities27%

Services (health, schools, offices…)53%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month36%

Over $3,333 a month46%

Jobs Jefferson residents hold

3,427 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)22%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)56%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month33%

Over $3,333 a month50%

+18%

Jobs based in Jefferson, 2013 → 2023: 4,260 → 5,042. 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.