Work & commute · Knoxville

Work & commute in Knoxville, TN

52% of Knoxville’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Oak Ridge (5%), Alcoa (2%) and Maryville (2%). Half commute less than 8 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

52%

41,261 of 79,478 working residents

Typical commute

8 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

20 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

13%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 38,217 Knoxville residents head out of town to work, 41,261 work right here, and 140,735 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Knoxville.

38,217live here, work elsewhere

41,261live and work here

140,735work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Knoxville goes to work

Knoxville (in town)right here

52%41,261

Oak Ridge19.1 mi away

5%3,617

Alcoa10.7 mi away

2%1,911

Maryville15.5 mi away

2%1,786

Farragut14.5 mi away

2%1,237

Chattanooga96.1 mi away

2%1,221

Clinton13.4 mi away

1%1,129

Memphis343.5 mi away

1%956

Sevierville21.4 mi away

1%888

Morristown39.7 mi away

1%604

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%24,868

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

How far

How far Knoxville commutes

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

58%

24%

14%

58%Under 10 mi

24%10–24 mi

4%25–50 mi

14%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Knoxville is a job hub

2.29jobs per working resident

A job hub

2.3 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Knoxville are

181,996 jobs are based in Knoxville. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Knoxville’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Knoxville

181,996 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)7%

Trade, transport & utilities22%

Services (health, schools, offices…)70%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month57%

Jobs Knoxville residents hold

79,478 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)12%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)67%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month55%

+10%

Jobs based in Knoxville, 2013 → 2023: 165,520 → 181,996. 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.