Work & commute · Zapata

Work & commute in Zapata, TX

Most working residents leave Zapata for work: only 14% work in town. The top destinations are Laredo (29%), Falcon Lake Estates (6%) and McAllen (5%). Half commute less than 47 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

14%

246 of 1,742 working residents

Typical commute

47 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

23 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 1,496 Zapata residents head out of town to work, 246 work right here, and 622 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Zapata.

1,496live here, work elsewhere

246live and work here

622work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Zapata goes to work

Laredo47.6 mi away

29%499

Zapata (in town)right here

14%246

Falcon Lake Estates2.1 mi away

6%101

McAllen78.3 mi away

5%81

Corpus Christi141 mi away

4%64

Medina2.2 mi away

3%51

Rio Grande City45.1 mi away

3%46

Houston308.4 mi away

2%42

Kingsville95.7 mi away

2%40

San Antonio182.5 mi away

2%38

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%534

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

How far

How far Zapata commutes

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

26%

32%

41%

26%Under 10 mi

1%10–24 mi

32%25–50 mi

41%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Zapata is a commuter town

0.50jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Zapata are

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

Jobs based in Zapata

868 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)18%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)65%

$1,250 a month or less24%

$1,251–$3,333 a month45%

Over $3,333 a month31%

Jobs Zapata residents hold

1,742 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)18%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less22%

$1,251–$3,333 a month40%

Over $3,333 a month38%

−49%

Jobs based in Zapata, 2013 → 2023: 1,711 → 868. 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.