Commuting in Contra Costa County, California: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:10 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Contra Costa County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:10 PM
Commute Time Burden in Contra Costa County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Contra Costa County spend about 62 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 258 hours, about 10.8 full days, spent commuting. That is 32% more time on the road than the California average of 23.5 minutes each way, a difference of 7.5 minutes.
Contra Costa County holds about 3.0% of California's population but accounts for roughly 3.9% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Contra Costa County would save about 103 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $3,203 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)
Contra Costa County
31.0 min
62.0 min
258 hrs/yr
$8,007
3,453
California
23.5 min
47.0 min
196 hrs/yr
$6,065
2,449
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
31.0
minutes to get to work in
Contra Costa County.
That's 38% longer than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Among the 3 slowest counties in California
The most common departure window is 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM, followed by 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 21.3% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Contra Costa County
Car:
69.7%
Worked at Home:
21.3%
Public Transportation:
5.4%
Walked:
1.8%
Other:
1.1%
Bicycle:
0.4%
Motorcycle:
0.2%
Taxi:
0.2%
Commute Mode Trends in Contra Costa County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Contra Costa 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
Public Transportation
Walked
Other
Bicycle
Taxi
Motorcycle
2009
82.6%
5.0%
8.9%
1.8%
0.8%
0.5%
0.0%
0.3%
2010
82.0%
5.6%
8.9%
1.7%
0.8%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
2011
82.2%
5.6%
8.9%
1.7%
0.8%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
2012
81.9%
5.6%
9.2%
1.6%
0.8%
0.5%
0.0%
0.3%
2013
81.6%
5.7%
9.3%
1.6%
0.9%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
2014
81.0%
5.9%
9.7%
1.6%
0.9%
0.5%
0.0%
0.3%
2015
80.6%
5.8%
10.1%
1.7%
1.0%
0.5%
0.0%
0.3%
2016
80.1%
5.9%
10.3%
1.7%
1.1%
0.5%
0.1%
0.3%
2017
79.8%
6.3%
10.3%
1.7%
1.1%
0.5%
0.1%
0.3%
2018
79.3%
6.6%
10.6%
1.7%
1.1%
0.5%
0.1%
0.3%
2019
79.0%
6.6%
10.9%
1.6%
1.1%
0.5%
0.1%
0.2%
2020
76.4%
9.9%
10.2%
1.6%
1.0%
0.5%
0.2%
0.2%
2021
73.6%
14.3%
8.8%
1.5%
1.0%
0.4%
0.2%
0.2%
2022
71.8%
17.0%
7.6%
1.7%
1.1%
0.4%
0.2%
0.2%
2023
70.5%
19.2%
6.5%
1.8%
1.1%
0.4%
0.2%
0.2%
2024
69.7%
21.3%
5.4%
1.8%
1.1%
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 82.6% in 2009 to 69.7% in 2024, down 12.9 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 13 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Contra Costa County: its share of workers rose from 5.0% in 2009 to 21.3% in 2024, up 16.3 percentage points. Most of that increase, 14.7 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Public transit lost the most ground, falling from 8.9% to 5.4% of workers (down 3.5 percentage points).
Working from home overtook public transit to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2021 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Contra Costa County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Contra Costa County?
The bars show when commuters in Contra Costa 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 California for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMContra Costa County6.9%California6.7%
6.9%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMContra Costa County4.4%California4.5%
4.4%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMContra Costa County4.9%California4.5%
4.9%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMContra Costa County8.5%California8.4%
8.5%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMContra Costa County7.3%California7.5%
7.3%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMContra Costa County12.4%California13.1%
12.4%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMContra Costa County10.7%California10.2%
10.7%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMContra Costa County12.4%California12.6%
12.4%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMContra Costa County5.7%California5.8%
5.7%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMContra Costa County8.2%California8.6%
8.2%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMContra Costa County4.1%California3.9%
4.1%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMContra Costa County2.1%California1.8%
2.1%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMContra Costa County7.1%California6.9%
7.1%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMContra Costa County5.4%California5.5%
5.4%
Contra Costa CountyCaliforniaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Contra Costa County is 8:00-8:29 AM, when 12.4% of commuters leave home, compared with 12.6% across California. Early starts are about as common as in California: 16.2% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 15.8% there. The morning rush looks much like California's: 42.8% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 43.3% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (26.8%) 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 Contra Costa 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 Contra Costa 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 Contra Costa County next to California 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
Contra Costa County
California
United States
2009
7:37 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:38 AM
7:41 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:40 AM
7:41 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:39 AM
7:42 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:40 AM
7:43 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:40 AM
7:43 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:39 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:37 AM
7:43 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:37 AM
7:42 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:37 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:37 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:38 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:40 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:42 AM
7:43 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:44 AM
7:44 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:46 AM
7:45 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Contra Costa County were on the road by 7:46 AM, 9 minutes later than in 2009 (7:37 AM). The shift is sharper than across California, where the typical start moved 6 minutes later. Commuters in Contra Costa County now leave 8 minutes later than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM). Since the 2019 release, which covers the years just before the pandemic, the typical start in Contra Costa County has moved 9 minutes later. The 2024 release is the latest typical start for Contra Costa County in the whole series.
How does Contra Costa County's commute time compare?
Metric
Contra Costa County
California
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
31.0 min
23.5 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
08:00 AM – 08:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
08:00 AM – 08:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
21.3%
17.2%
15.0%
Walked
1.8%
2.4%
2.4%
Public Transit
5.4%
2.9%
3.2%
The average commute time in Contra Costa County is 31.0 minutes, longer than the 23.5 minutes in California.
5.4% commute by public transit, higher than the 2.9% in California. 1.8% commute by walking, lower than the 2.4% in California.
Contra Costa County, CA Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Contra Costa County, CA is the 2nd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 1,163,035 residents against a local median of 733,246. Contra Costa County, CA's work from home, at 21.3%, runs 46% above the 14.6% typical of the counties around it.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 31.0 min against a local median of 23.2 min, 34% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 34% above the local median it puts Contra Costa County, CA at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 15.1% on work from home, so Contra Costa County, CA sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Contra Costa County, CA has the 3rd highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Contra Costa County, California.
Is commuting expensive in Contra Costa County, California?
Commuters here spend an estimated 258 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $8,007 at a typical national wage. That's 32% more than the typical California commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Contra Costa County, California?
Traffic peaks between 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM in Contra Costa County, California. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in California?
Among counties in California, the shortest average commutes are in Inyo County (11.1 min), Mono County (12.0 min), Del Norte County (12.1 min). The longest are in Alpine County (31.3 min), San Benito County (31.2 min), Contra Costa County (31.0 min).