The Big Cities With The Most Remote Workers

Nationwide, 13.5% of the U.S. workforce works from home. While remote work offers the promise of living far away from one's employer and increasing one's purchasing power by living in a more affordable place far outside the city center, many of the country's largest, densest cities are home to large shares of remote workers far above the national average.

The prevalence of remote work is largely a function of industry composition. Cities with large technology, finance, and professional services sectors — where labor is more easily transposed to online environments — have higher rates of remote work, while those dominated by manufacturing, retail, or hospitality have far lower rates.

The popularity of remote work in large cities poses challenges for economic development. As workers spend less time in downtown offices, they also spend less money at nearby restaurants, stores, and transit systems. As businesses and municipal governments face declining revenues, cities like Boulder — where 31.6% of the adult workforce works from home — must rethink how to sustain their tax bases and keep central business districts vital. A closer look at the data reveals the large cities with the most remote workers.

To determine the large cities where the most people work from home, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed five-year data on commuting patterns from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey. Cities with at least 100,000 residents were ranked by the percentage of workers 16 years and over who work from home. Supplemental data on median household income, median home value, and total population are also from the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 22.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 71.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 15.4%
• Median household income: $88,792
• Median home value: $646,800
• Total population: 101,472

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 22.7%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 74.0%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 52.3%
• Median household income: $103,691
• Median home value: $469,800
• Total population: 278,123

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.1%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 74.6%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 53.5%
• Median household income: $97,187
• Median home value: $383,700
• Total population: 124,288

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.2%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 70.1%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 59.9%
• Median household income: $96,257
• Median home value: $405,600
• Total population: 118,269

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 59.3%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 41.7%
• Median household income: $80,269
• Median home value: $345,600
• Total population: 426,845

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 71.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 31.1%
• Median household income: $82,424
• Median home value: $377,800
• Total population: 470,763

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 55.1%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 50.3%
• Median household income: $97,369
• Median home value: $924,700
• Total population: 438,072

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.6%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 73.1%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 59.3%
• Median household income: $121,351
• Median home value: $518,600
• Total population: 271,118

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.6%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 63.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 50.3%
• Median household income: $103,778
• Median home value: $1,045,000
• Total population: 136,462

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 23.7%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 68.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 60.4%
• Median household income: $173,670
• Median home value: $1,527,900
• Total population: 129,239

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 24.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 64.2%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 30.6%
• Median household income: $91,681
• Median home value: $586,700
• Total population: 713,734

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 24.7%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 71.2%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 61.6%
• Median household income: $128,167
• Median home value: $626,700
• Total population: 107,386

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 24.8%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 72.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 57.3%
• Median household income: $129,130
• Median home value: $429,900
• Total population: 107,684

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.0%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 73.0%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 52.5%
• Median household income: $134,602
• Median home value: $455,500
• Total population: 100,501

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.2%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 56.8%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 55.2%
• Median household income: $113,638
• Median home value: $696,800
• Total population: 156,788

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 57.5%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 20.5%
• Median household income: $88,792
• Median home value: $557,600
• Total population: 642,715

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 70.5%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 47.2%
• Median household income: $108,649
• Median home value: $440,600
• Total population: 287,339

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 69.2%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 16.1%
• Median household income: $78,438
• Median home value: $351,500
• Total population: 886,283

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 25.9%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 66.8%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 45.6%
• Median household income: $129,647
• Median home value: $1,115,400
• Total population: 308,160

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 26.2%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 50.6%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 27.6%
• Median household income: $81,089
• Median home value: $435,100
• Total population: 121,179

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 26.6%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 59.8%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 31.4%
• Median household income: $81,938
• Median home value: $420,600
• Total population: 499,287

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 27.0%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 64.1%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 56.8%
• Median household income: $181,862
• Median home value: $1,816,600
• Total population: 153,455

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 27.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 63.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 53.9%
• Median household income: $150,937
• Median home value: $509,900
• Total population: 149,424

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 27.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 66.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 52.1%
• Median household income: $95,816
• Median home value: $1,041,100
• Total population: 105,165

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 27.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 34.6%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 17.7%
• Median household income: $141,446
• Median home value: $1,380,500
• Total population: 836,321

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 27.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 65.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 12.8%
• Median household income: $91,461
• Median home value: $512,700
• Total population: 967,862

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 28.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 24.0%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 41.9%
• Median household income: $126,469
• Median home value: $1,040,500
• Total population: 117,794

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 29.0%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 67.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 48.7%
• Median household income: $139,326
• Median home value: $1,156,900
• Total population: 114,500

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 29.0%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 66.6%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 44.3%
• Median household income: $107,372
• Median home value: $709,900
• Total population: 242,169

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 29.0%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 64.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 53.7%
• Median household income: $101,593
• Median home value: $583,900
• Total population: 107,198

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 29.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 32.4%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 18.4%
• Median household income: $106,287
• Median home value: $724,600
• Total population: 672,079

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 29.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 67.3%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 55.6%
• Median household income: $155,847
• Median home value: $672,600
• Total population: 101,437

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 30.7%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 61.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 48.9%
• Median household income: $176,350
• Median home value: $1,289,400
• Total population: 228,518

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 31.3%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 42.7%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 19.5%
• Median household income: $121,984
• Median home value: $912,100
• Total population: 741,440

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 31.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 45.0%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 46.1%
• Median household income: $140,160
• Median home value: $864,800
• Total population: 235,463

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 31.6%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 45.5%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 24.7%
• Median household income: $85,364
• Median home value: $982,600
• Total population: 106,274

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 32.4%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 64.5%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 47.3%
• Median household income: $129,399
• Median home value: $525,200
• Total population: 176,686

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 32.5%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 31.2%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 43.7%
• Median household income: $108,558
• Median home value: $1,351,100
• Total population: 120,223

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 32.8%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 54.3%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 42.5%
• Median household income: $161,300
• Median home value: $1,203,100
• Total population: 151,199

• Workers 16 years and over working from home: 33.7%
• Workers 16 years and over commuting via car: 63.3%
• Workers commuting outside city of residence: 48.6%
• Median household income: $146,158
• Median home value: $595,400
• Total population: 210,238