Work & commute · Lexington

Work & commute in Lexington, VA

44% of Lexington’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Roanoke (3%), Buena Vista (3%) and East Lexington (2%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

44%

967 of 2,200 working residents

Typical commute

5 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

13 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

15%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 1,233 Lexington residents head out of town to work, 967 work right here, and 4,570 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Lexington.

1,233live here, work elsewhere

967live and work here

4,570work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Lexington goes to work

Lexington (in town)right here

44%967

Roanoke44.8 mi away

3%64

Buena Vista6 mi away

3%60

East Lexington2 mi away

2%52

Lynchburg29.8 mi away

2%36

Richmond109.1 mi away

1%29

Staunton33.3 mi away

1%28

Charlottesville55.2 mi away

1%27

Waynesboro35.5 mi away

1%26

Cave Spring49.3 mi away

1%21

Everywhere elseother towns and states

40%890

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

How far

How far Lexington commutes

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

54%

14%

30%

54%Under 10 mi

3%10–24 mi

14%25–50 mi

30%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Lexington is a job hub

2.52jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Lexington are

5,537 jobs are based in Lexington. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Lexington’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Lexington

5,537 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)1%

Trade, transport & utilities7%

Services (health, schools, offices…)92%

$1,250 a month or less30%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month44%

Jobs Lexington residents hold

2,200 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities15%

Services (health, schools, offices…)74%

$1,250 a month or less21%

$1,251–$3,333 a month27%

Over $3,333 a month52%

+48%

Jobs based in Lexington, 2013 → 2023: 3,733 → 5,537. 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.