New York County Commute Time Map & Patterns

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Commuting in New York County, New York: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.

You 9/24/26, 8:29 PM

How much time do drivers in New York County spend on the road daily?

Map AI 9/24/26, 8:29 PM

Commute Time Burden in New York County: Annual Hours and Cost

Commuters in New York 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 257 hours, about 10.7 full days, spent commuting. That is 8% more time on the road than the New York average of 28.7 minutes each way, a difference of 2.2 minutes.

New York County holds about 8.2% of New York's population but accounts for roughly 8.9% of its total commuting time.

Working from home just 2 days a week in New York County would save about 103 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $3,188 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)
New York County	30.9 min	61.7 min	257 hrs/yr	$7,971	4,612
New York	28.7 min	57.4 min	239 hrs/yr	$7,414	1,586
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.

Commute Time Map: New York Counties

Fastest commutes among counties in New York

Hamilton County (13.6 min)
Chautauqua County (15.4 min)
Franklin County (16.4 min)

Slowest commutes among counties in New York

Bronx County (43.2 min)
Queens County (41.8 min)
Kings County (41.6 min)

Compare commute times among different counties

New York County

Click a county to open it Explore the map →

Average commute time

On average, it takes 30.9 minutes to get to work in New York County. That's 38% longer than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.

Slower than 90% of counties in New York

The most common departure window is 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM, followed by 09:00 AM – 09:59 AM. Public transit is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 25.5% work from home. This differs from the national pattern, where driving is the most common commute choice.

How People Get to Work in New York County

Driving is 87% less common in New York County than the New York average (6.9% vs 55.0%).

Walking is unusually common in New York County: 3.2 times more than the New York average (17.8% vs 5.6%).

Biking is unusually common in New York County: 3.3 times more than the New York average (2.7% vs 0.8%).

New York County stands out for active commuting: 20.5% of workers walk or bike to work, 3.2 times the New York average of 6.4%.

Commute Mode Trends in New York County, 2009-2024

This chart shows how workers in New York 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	Public Transportation	Worked at Home	Walked	Car	Bicycle	Taxi	Other	Motorcycle
2009	57.8%	6.3%	21.0%	9.4%	1.0%	3.7%	0.7%	0.1%
2010	58.1%	6.3%	21.3%	9.1%	1.0%	3.4%	0.6%	0.1%
2011	58.3%	6.5%	21.4%	8.9%	1.0%	3.2%	0.6%	0.1%
2012	58.4%	6.7%	21.2%	8.8%	1.1%	3.0%	0.7%	0.1%
2013	58.8%	6.7%	20.9%	8.5%	1.3%	3.0%	0.8%	0.1%
2014	59.1%	6.7%	20.7%	8.2%	1.5%	2.9%	0.7%	0.1%
2015	59.2%	6.8%	20.6%	8.0%	1.7%	2.9%	0.7%	0.1%
2016	59.2%	6.9%	20.6%	7.9%	1.9%	2.7%	0.8%	0.1%
2017	59.5%	6.7%	20.4%	7.8%	2.1%	2.6%	0.7%	0.1%
2018	59.3%	6.9%	20.3%	8.0%	2.2%	2.5%	0.8%	0.1%
2019	58.8%	7.2%	20.4%	7.9%	2.3%	2.6%	0.8%	0.1%
2020	54.9%	12.0%	19.7%	7.7%	2.3%	2.4%	1.0%	0.1%
2021	50.8%	17.0%	18.9%	7.6%	2.3%	2.2%	1.1%	0.1%
2022	47.8%	20.6%	18.4%	7.2%	2.5%	2.2%	1.2%	0.1%
2023	45.5%	23.0%	18.6%	7.1%	2.5%	2.0%	1.2%	0.1%
2024	43.8%	25.5%	17.8%	6.9%	2.7%	1.8%	1.3%	0.1%

Driving's share fell from 9.4% in 2009 to 6.9% in 2024, down 2.5 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 6 releases.

Working from home gained the most ground in New York County: its share of workers rose from 6.3% in 2009 to 25.5% in 2024, up 19.2 percentage points. Most of that increase, 18.3 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.

Public transit lost the most ground, falling from 57.8% to 43.8% of workers (down 14.0 percentage points).

Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2022 release and has stayed ahead since.

Public transit was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024, with its share ranging from 43.8% to 59.5%.

Commute Start Times in New York County

Night OwlThe latest start among New York's 62 counties: half of commuters are still at home at 8:31 AM.
Sleeping InThe highest share of 9 AM-or-later starts among New York's 62 counties: 35.6% of commuters leave at 9 AM or later.
Rush-Hour DodgersThe 2nd-lowest share of rush-hour departures among New York's 62 counties: only 41.8% of commuters leave between 6:30 and 8:29 AM.

What Time Do People Leave for Work in New York County?

The bars show when commuters in New York 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 New York for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.

12:00-4:59 AM		2.0%
5:00-5:29 AM		1.1%
5:30-5:59 AM		1.0%
6:00-6:29 AM		3.7%
6:30-6:59 AM		4.1%
7:00-7:29 AM		9.2%
7:30-7:59 AM		9.5%
8:00-8:29 AM		19.0%
8:30-8:59 AM		14.8%
9:00-9:59 AM		19.0%
10:00-10:59 AM		5.1%
11:00-11:59 AM		1.9%
12:00-3:59 PM		5.5%
4:00-11:59 PM		4.0%

New York County New York Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates

The busiest time to head out in New York County is 8:00-8:29 AM, when 19.0% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.0% across New York. Early starts are less common than in New York: 4.2% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 10.6% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in New York: 41.8% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 47.1% there. About 1 in 3 commuters (35.6%) 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 New York 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 New York 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 New York County next to New York 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	New York County	New York	United States
2009	8:25 AM	7:54 AM	7:37 AM
2010	8:26 AM	7:54 AM	7:38 AM
2011	8:25 AM	7:54 AM	7:38 AM
2012	8:25 AM	7:55 AM	7:38 AM
2013	8:25 AM	7:56 AM	7:39 AM
2014	8:25 AM	7:56 AM	7:39 AM
2015	8:25 AM	7:56 AM	7:38 AM
2016	8:26 AM	7:56 AM	7:38 AM
2017	8:26 AM	7:56 AM	7:38 AM
2018	8:26 AM	7:55 AM	7:37 AM
2019	8:27 AM	7:55 AM	7:37 AM
2020	8:27 AM	7:55 AM	7:37 AM
2021	8:27 AM	7:55 AM	7:37 AM
2022	8:28 AM	7:56 AM	7:37 AM
2023	8:29 AM	7:56 AM	7:38 AM
2024	8:31 AM	7:57 AM	7:38 AM

In 2024, half of commuters in New York County were on the road by 8:31 AM, 5 minutes later than in 2009 (8:25 AM). The shift is sharper than across New York, where the typical start moved 3 minutes later. Commuters in New York County now leave 53 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 New York County has moved 4 minutes later. The 2024 release is the latest typical start for New York County in the whole series.

How does New York County's commute time compare?

Metric	New York County	New York	US Average
Avg. Commute Time	30.9 min	28.7 min	22.4 min
Departure Window	08:00 AM – 08:29 AM	08:00 AM – 08:29 AM	07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window	09:00 AM – 09:59 AM	07:00 AM – 07:29 AM	07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home	25.5%	15.0%	15.0%
Walked	17.8%	5.6%	2.4%
Public Transit	43.8%	21.7%	3.2%

The average commute time in New York County is 30.9 minutes, longer than the 28.7 minutes in New York.

43.8% commute by public transit, higher than the 21.7% in New York. 17.8% commute by walking, higher than the 5.6% in New York.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

New York County, NY Commute Compared With Nearby Counties

New York County, NY is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 1,628,057 residents against a local median of 1,403,126. Where New York County, NY breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 38% above the local median of 18.5% at 25.5%.

One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 30.9 min against a local median of 41.6 min, 26% below it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 26% below the local median it puts New York County, NY at the better end of the local range. The counties themselves spread 11.7% on work from home, so New York County, NY sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. New York County, NY has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.

Area	Population	One-way commute	Work from home	Typical departure
New York County, NY	1,628,057	30.9 min #2/6	25.5% #1/6	8:31 AM #6/6
Hudson County, NJ	717,070	32.7 min	20.5%	8:03 AM
Bronx County, NY	1,403,126	43.2 min	8.9%	7:53 AM
Kings County, NY	2,630,245	41.6 min	19.1%	8:14 AM
Queens County, NY	2,320,290	41.8 min	12.9%	8:00 AM
Bergen County, NJ	960,507	27.0 min	18.5%	7:56 AM

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about commuting in New York County, New York.

Is living in New York County, New York good for avoiding long commute costs?

Commuters here spend an estimated 257 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $7,971 at a typical national wage. That's 8% more than the typical New York commuter spends.

When is peak congestion during the morning commute in New York County, New York?

Traffic peaks between 08:00 AM – 08:29 AM in New York County, New York. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 09:00 AM – 09:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.

How much time do residents in New York County, New York save by working from home?

About 25.5% of workers here already work from home. Working from home just 2 days a week in New York County would save about 103 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $3,188 at the same national wage assumption used above.

How do commute times compare across counties in New York?

Among counties in New York, the shortest average commutes are in Hamilton County (13.6 min), Chautauqua County (15.4 min), Franklin County (16.4 min). The longest are in Bronx County (43.2 min), Queens County (41.8 min), Kings County (41.6 min).