Commuting in Tarrant County, Texas: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 8:13 PM
How long is the round-trip commute in Tarrant County?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:13 PM
Commute Time Burden in Tarrant County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Tarrant County spend about 47 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 197 hours, about 8.2 full days, spent commuting. That is 4% more time on the road than the Texas average of 22.8 minutes each way, a difference of 0.8 minutes.
Tarrant County holds about 7.2% of Texas's population but accounts for roughly 7.4% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Tarrant County would save about 79 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,443 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)
Tarrant County
23.6 min
47.3 min
197 hrs/yr
$6,107
3,073
Texas
22.8 min
45.6 min
190 hrs/yr
$5,888
1,441
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
23.6
minutes to get to work in
Tarrant County.
That's 5% longer than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Slower than 78% of counties in Texas
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 14.8% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Tarrant County
Car:
82.0%
Worked at Home:
14.8%
Other:
1.4%
Walked:
1.1%
Public Transportation:
0.3%
Taxi:
0.2%
Bicycle:
0.1%
Motorcycle:
< 0.1%
Commute Mode Trends in Tarrant County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Tarrant 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
Taxi
Motorcycle
Bicycle
2009
92.8%
3.6%
1.2%
1.3%
0.7%
0.0%
0.2%
0.2%
2010
92.6%
3.9%
1.2%
1.2%
0.7%
0.0%
0.3%
0.2%
2011
92.7%
3.9%
1.2%
1.1%
0.7%
0.0%
0.2%
0.1%
2012
92.8%
3.8%
1.2%
1.1%
0.7%
0.0%
0.3%
0.2%
2013
92.9%
3.8%
1.1%
1.1%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
0.2%
2014
92.9%
3.9%
1.0%
1.1%
0.6%
0.0%
0.3%
0.2%
2015
92.9%
3.9%
1.0%
1.2%
0.6%
0.0%
0.2%
0.2%
2016
92.7%
4.2%
0.9%
1.2%
0.6%
0.0%
0.2%
0.2%
2017
92.7%
4.3%
0.8%
1.2%
0.6%
0.1%
0.2%
0.2%
2018
92.6%
4.5%
0.7%
1.2%
0.6%
0.1%
0.2%
0.2%
2019
92.5%
4.8%
0.7%
1.1%
0.6%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
2020
90.2%
7.1%
0.7%
1.1%
0.5%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
2021
88.0%
9.4%
0.8%
1.1%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
2022
85.6%
11.6%
1.0%
1.1%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
2023
83.5%
13.6%
1.2%
1.1%
0.4%
0.1%
0.1%
0.1%
2024
82.0%
14.8%
1.4%
1.1%
0.3%
0.2%
0.1%
0.1%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2013 at 92.9%. Overall it fell from 92.8% in 2009 to 82.0% in 2024, down 10.8 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 7 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Tarrant County: its share of workers rose from 3.6% in 2009 to 14.8% in 2024, up 11.2 percentage points. Most of that increase, 10.0 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Commute Start Times in Tarrant County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Tarrant County?
The bars show when commuters in Tarrant 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 Texas for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMTarrant County5.5%Texas5.5%
5.5%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMTarrant County4.8%Texas4.4%
4.8%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMTarrant County5.4%Texas5.1%
5.4%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMTarrant County9.5%Texas9.3%
9.5%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMTarrant County8.6%Texas9.3%
8.6%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMTarrant County15.1%Texas15.3%
15.1%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMTarrant County10.0%Texas11.8%
10.0%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMTarrant County10.9%Texas11.5%
10.9%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMTarrant County4.6%Texas4.8%
4.6%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMTarrant County6.6%Texas6.7%
6.6%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMTarrant County3.0%Texas3.1%
3.0%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMTarrant County1.3%Texas1.3%
1.3%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMTarrant County7.3%Texas5.8%
7.3%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMTarrant County7.3%Texas6.2%
7.3%
Tarrant CountyTexasSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Tarrant County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 15.1% of commuters leave home, compared with 15.3% across Texas. Early starts are about as common as in Texas: 15.7% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 14.9% there. The morning rush is more spread out than in Texas: 44.7% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 47.9% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (25.5%) 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 Tarrant 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 Tarrant 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 Tarrant County next to Texas 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
Tarrant County
Texas
United States
2009
7:34 AM
7:32 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:34 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:34 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:35 AM
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:35 AM
7:32 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:35 AM
7:32 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:34 AM
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:34 AM
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:34 AM
7:30 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:33 AM
7:30 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:33 AM
7:30 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:33 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:32 AM
7:31 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:33 AM
7:32 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:33 AM
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:33 AM
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Tarrant County were on the road by 7:33 AM, 1 minute earlier than in 2009 (7:34 AM). That goes against the trend across Texas, where the typical commuter now leaves 1 minute later than in 2009. Commuters in Tarrant County now leave 5 minutes earlier than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM).
How does Tarrant County's commute time compare?
Metric
Tarrant County
Texas
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
23.6 min
22.8 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
14.8%
14.4%
15.0%
Walked
1.1%
1.5%
2.4%
Public Transit
0.3%
0.9%
3.2%
The average commute time in Tarrant County is 23.6 minutes, longer than the 22.8 minutes in Texas.
0.3% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.9% in Texas. 1.1% commute by walking, lower than the 1.5% in Texas.
Tarrant County, TX Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Tarrant County, TX is the 2nd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 2,166,122 residents against a local median of 195,591. The measure that sets Tarrant County, TX apart most is one-way commute: 23.6 min, 22% below the local median of 30.4 min. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves spread 7.3 min on one-way commute, so Tarrant County, TX sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Tarrant County, TX has the lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Tarrant County, Texas.
Is commuting expensive in Tarrant County, Texas?
Commuters here spend an estimated 197 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $6,107 at a typical national wage. That's 4% more than the typical Texas commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Tarrant County, Texas?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Tarrant County, Texas. 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 Texas?
Among counties in Texas, the shortest average commutes are in Loving County (3.3 min), King County (5.8 min), Terrell County (6.5 min). The longest are in Bandera County (38.6 min), San Jacinto County (35.9 min), Liberty County (33.6 min).