Commuting in Maricopa County, Arizona: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
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How long is the round-trip commute in Maricopa County?
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Commute Time Burden in Maricopa County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Maricopa County spend about 46 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 193 hours, about 8.0 full days, spent commuting. That is 3% more time on the road than the Arizona average of 22.4 minutes each way, a difference of 0.7 minutes.
Maricopa County holds about 61.7% of Arizona's population but accounts for roughly 63.7% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Maricopa County would save about 77 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,392 at the same national wage assumption used above.
Area
One-Way Commute
Daily Round-Trip
Yearly Time Spent
Estimated Yearly Cost
Local Road Traffic (VPD)
Maricopa County
23.1 min
46.3 min
193 hrs/yr
$5,980
3,454
Arizona
22.4 min
44.9 min
187 hrs/yr
$5,798
1,948
United States
22.4 min
44.8 min
187 hrs/yr
$5,790
1,355
The estimated yearly cost applies a single national rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area - treat it
as a rough estimate, not a paycheck figure. Local road traffic counts, vehicles per day
on non-highway roads, come from proprietary
Ticon and
TrafficZoom data.
On average, it takes
23.1
minutes to get to work in
Maricopa County.
That's 3% longer than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Among the 3 slowest counties in Arizona
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 20.8% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Maricopa County
Car:
74.3%
Worked at Home:
20.8%
Other:
1.5%
Walked:
1.4%
Public Transportation:
1.2%
Bicycle:
0.4%
Taxi:
0.2%
Motorcycle:
0.2%
Commute Mode Trends in Maricopa County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Maricopa County get to work, as a share of all workers aged 16 and over, across 16 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) releases from 2009 to 2024. Each release is a 5-year estimate: the 2024 figures cover surveys taken from 2020 to 2024. Because neighboring releases share most of their survey years, the lines move gradually, and a sudden change such as the rise of remote work in 2020 spreads across several releases. Hover over or tap a line to highlight it, and use the legend to show or hide a mode. Driving starts hidden so the smaller modes stay readable.
Share of workers aged 16 and over, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show commute mode data by year
Year
Car
Worked at Home
Other
Walked
Public Transportation
Bicycle
Taxi
Motorcycle
2009
88.6%
4.7%
1.1%
1.7%
2.5%
0.8%
0.1%
0.4%
2010
88.4%
5.2%
1.1%
1.7%
2.4%
0.8%
0.1%
0.4%
2011
88.1%
5.5%
1.0%
1.7%
2.4%
0.8%
0.1%
0.5%
2012
88.1%
5.6%
1.0%
1.6%
2.3%
0.8%
0.1%
0.5%
2013
87.7%
5.8%
1.1%
1.6%
2.4%
0.8%
0.1%
0.5%
2014
87.8%
5.9%
1.2%
1.5%
2.3%
0.8%
0.0%
0.5%
2015
87.6%
5.9%
1.2%
1.6%
2.4%
0.9%
0.1%
0.5%
2016
87.5%
6.1%
1.2%
1.5%
2.3%
0.9%
0.1%
0.5%
2017
87.4%
6.4%
1.1%
1.5%
2.2%
0.9%
0.1%
0.4%
2018
87.3%
6.6%
1.1%
1.5%
2.1%
0.8%
0.2%
0.4%
2019
87.0%
7.0%
1.1%
1.5%
2.0%
0.8%
0.2%
0.4%
2020
84.4%
9.8%
1.3%
1.5%
1.8%
0.7%
0.2%
0.3%
2021
81.5%
13.2%
1.2%
1.5%
1.5%
0.6%
0.2%
0.3%
2022
78.7%
16.2%
1.3%
1.4%
1.4%
0.5%
0.2%
0.3%
2023
76.2%
18.8%
1.4%
1.4%
1.3%
0.5%
0.2%
0.3%
2024
74.3%
20.8%
1.5%
1.4%
1.2%
0.4%
0.2%
0.2%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Overall its share fell from 88.6% in 2009 to 74.3% in 2024, down 14.3 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 10 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Maricopa County: its share of workers rose from 4.7% in 2009 to 20.8% in 2024, up 16.1 percentage points. Most of that increase, 13.8 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Public transit lost the most ground, falling from 2.5% to 1.2% of workers (down 1.3 percentage points).
Commute Start Times in Maricopa County
🛌Hitting SnoozeThe 2nd-biggest shift to later mornings among Arizona's 15 counties: the typical start is 5 minutes later than in 2009.
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Maricopa County?
The bars show when commuters in Maricopa County leave home for work, as a share of everyone who commutes (people who work from home are not counted), from the 2024 ACS 5-year estimates. The thin violet marks show Arizona for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMMaricopa County8.5%Arizona8.5%
8.5%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMMaricopa County5.9%Arizona5.8%
5.9%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMMaricopa County5.5%Arizona5.7%
5.5%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMMaricopa County9.7%Arizona9.2%
9.7%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMMaricopa County9.2%Arizona9.3%
9.2%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMMaricopa County13.0%Arizona13.1%
13.0%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMMaricopa County9.2%Arizona10.1%
9.2%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMMaricopa County10.6%Arizona10.1%
10.6%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMMaricopa County4.4%Arizona4.2%
4.4%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMMaricopa County6.1%Arizona5.9%
6.1%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMMaricopa County2.9%Arizona2.9%
2.9%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMMaricopa County1.4%Arizona1.5%
1.4%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMMaricopa County6.8%Arizona7.0%
6.8%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMMaricopa County6.6%Arizona6.5%
6.6%
Maricopa CountyArizonaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Maricopa County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 13.0% of commuters leave home, compared with 13.1% across Arizona. Early starts are about as common as in Arizona: 20.0% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 20.1% there. The morning rush looks much like Arizona's: 42.0% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 42.6% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (23.9%) leave at 9 AM or later, which usually points to shift work, flexible hours or part-time jobs.
When people leave matters as much as how far they go. Rush-hour traffic shrinks how much ground a 20-minute trip covers, so a trade area drawn as a simple circle often takes in neighborhoods that customers or staff would never drive from and misses others that are an easy trip. A drive-time zone, also called an isochrone, outlines every place within a set number of minutes of an address, which makes it the more honest way to size a store's catchment, a hiring area or the commute from a new home.
See it for yourself on the interactive map: click any spot in Maricopa County, pick a 5, 10, 15 or 30-minute drive and see the local demographics of the people who live within that exact drive time.
Is Maricopa County Waking Up Earlier? Typical Departure Time, 2009-2024
Each line follows the typical (median) departure time: the moment by which half of commuters have already left home. Higher on the chart means a later start. Setting Maricopa County next to Arizona and the U.S. shows whether local mornings are drifting earlier or later than everyone else's. The figures span 16 ACS 5-year releases, so changes build up gradually rather than jumping from one year to the next.
Median time commuters leave home, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show typical departure times by year
Year
Maricopa County
Arizona
United States
2009
7:21 AM
7:23 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:24 AM
7:25 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:25 AM
7:27 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:26 AM
7:27 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:26 AM
7:27 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:24 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:24 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:25 AM
7:25 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:25 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:26 AM
7:26 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Maricopa County were on the road by 7:26 AM, 5 minutes later than in 2009 (7:21 AM). Arizona followed the same path, with the typical start moving 3 minutes later. Commuters in Maricopa County now leave 12 minutes earlier than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM).
How does Maricopa County's commute time compare?
Metric
Maricopa County
Arizona
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
23.1 min
22.4 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
08:00 AM – 08:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
20.8%
18.4%
15.0%
Walked
1.4%
1.7%
2.4%
Public Transit
1.2%
1.0%
3.2%
The average commute time in Maricopa County is 23.1 minutes, longer than the 22.4 minutes in Arizona.
1.2% commute by public transit, higher than the 1.0% in Arizona. 1.4% commute by walking, lower than the 1.7% in Arizona.
Maricopa County, AZ Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Maricopa County, AZ is the largest of the 6 counties compared here, 4,540,439 residents against a local median of 245,472. Maricopa County, AZ's work from home, at 20.8%, runs 44% above the 14.4% typical of the counties around it.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 23.1 min against a local median of 18.9 min, 23% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 23% above the local median it puts Maricopa County, AZ at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 9.2% on work from home, so Maricopa County, AZ sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Maricopa County, AZ has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Maricopa County, Arizona.
Is living in Maricopa County, Arizona good for avoiding long commute costs?
Commuters here spend an estimated 193 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,980 at a typical national wage. That's 3% more than the typical Arizona commuter spends.
When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Maricopa County, Arizona?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Maricopa County, Arizona. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Arizona?
Among counties in Arizona, the shortest average commutes are in La Paz County (10.3 min), Gila County (13.4 min), Greenlee County (13.9 min). The longest are in Pinal County (31.0 min), Maricopa County (23.1 min), Pima County (22.2 min).