Commuting in Island County, Washington: 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
Is the commute in Island County longer than the national average?
Map AI9/24/26, 8:13 PM
Commute Time Burden in Island County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Island County spend about 35 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 146 hours, about 6.1 full days, spent commuting. That is 22% less time on the road than the Washington average of 22.4 minutes each way, a difference of 4.9 minutes.
Island County holds about 1.1% of Washington's population but accounts for roughly 0.9% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Island County would save about 58 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $1,808 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)
Island County
17.5 min
35.0 min
146 hrs/yr
$4,520
1,803
Washington
22.4 min
44.8 min
187 hrs/yr
$5,785
1,525
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
17.5
minutes to get to work in
Island County.
That's 22% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 14.1% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Island County
Car:
78.6%
Worked at Home:
14.1%
Walked:
3.7%
Public Transportation:
2.1%
Other:
0.8%
Bicycle:
0.4%
Motorcycle:
0.3%
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Island County, versus 0.1% in Washington.
Commute Mode Trends in Island County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Island 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
Walked
Public Transportation
Other
Bicycle
Motorcycle
Taxi
2009
79.3%
6.1%
10.0%
2.8%
0.8%
0.3%
0.8%
0.0%
2010
81.8%
5.8%
7.5%
2.9%
1.1%
0.3%
0.6%
0.0%
2011
84.6%
6.0%
4.3%
3.2%
1.0%
0.2%
0.6%
0.1%
2012
84.6%
6.6%
3.9%
2.8%
1.2%
0.2%
0.6%
0.1%
2013
84.5%
6.6%
3.7%
3.0%
1.3%
0.2%
0.7%
0.0%
2014
84.4%
6.8%
3.5%
2.9%
1.4%
0.2%
0.8%
0.0%
2015
84.2%
7.2%
3.5%
2.8%
1.3%
0.3%
0.7%
0.1%
2016
84.6%
7.2%
3.5%
2.5%
1.3%
0.3%
0.6%
0.1%
2017
83.7%
7.1%
4.4%
2.6%
1.2%
0.4%
0.7%
0.0%
2018
84.4%
6.9%
4.1%
2.6%
1.0%
0.4%
0.6%
0.0%
2019
84.1%
7.4%
3.9%
2.5%
0.6%
0.6%
0.8%
0.0%
2020
83.5%
8.7%
3.7%
2.0%
0.8%
0.6%
0.7%
0.0%
2021
82.6%
10.6%
3.3%
1.7%
0.6%
0.5%
0.7%
0.0%
2022
81.8%
11.9%
2.8%
2.0%
0.5%
0.5%
0.4%
0.0%
2023
79.6%
13.8%
3.3%
1.9%
0.6%
0.4%
0.4%
0.0%
2024
78.6%
14.1%
3.7%
2.1%
0.8%
0.4%
0.3%
0.0%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2011 at 84.6%. Overall it fell from 79.3% in 2009 to 78.6% in 2024, down 0.7 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 6 releases.
Working from home gained the most ground in Island County: its share of workers rose from 6.1% in 2009 to 14.1% in 2024, up 8.0 percentage points. Most of that increase, 6.7 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 10.0% to 3.7% of workers (down 6.3 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2011 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Island County
🛌Hitting SnoozeThe 2nd-biggest shift to later mornings among Washington's 39 counties: the typical start is 9 minutes later than in 2009.
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Island County?
The bars show when commuters in Island 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 Washington for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMIsland County7.2%Washington7.1%
7.2%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMIsland County3.7%Washington4.7%
3.7%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMIsland County6.7%Washington5.8%
6.7%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMIsland County8.2%Washington8.6%
8.2%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMIsland County9.3%Washington9.5%
9.3%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMIsland County13.5%Washington12.4%
13.5%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMIsland County10.8%Washington11.0%
10.8%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMIsland County9.4%Washington10.2%
9.4%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMIsland County4.5%Washington5.5%
4.5%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMIsland County6.0%Washington7.5%
6.0%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMIsland County3.1%Washington3.5%
3.1%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMIsland County1.7%Washington1.7%
1.7%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMIsland County9.8%Washington6.9%
9.8%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMIsland County6.2%Washington5.6%
6.2%
Island CountyWashingtonSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Island County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 13.5% of commuters leave home, compared with 12.4% across Washington. Early starts are about as common as in Washington: 17.6% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 17.6% there. The morning rush looks much like Washington's: 43.0% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 43.1% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (26.7%) 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 Island 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 Island 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 Island County next to Washington 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
Island County
Washington
United States
2009
7:25 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:27 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:26 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:28 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:27 AM
7:35 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:29 AM
7:35 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:28 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:29 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:29 AM
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:31 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:25 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:27 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:26 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:27 AM
7:33 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:30 AM
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:34 AM
7:35 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Island County were on the road by 7:34 AM, 9 minutes later than in 2009 (7:25 AM). The shift is sharper than across Washington, where the typical start moved 2 minutes later. Commuters in Island County now leave 4 minutes earlier than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM). Since the 2019 release, which covers the years just before the pandemic, the typical start in Island County has moved 9 minutes later. The 2024 release is the latest typical start for Island County in the whole series.
How does Island County's commute time compare?
Metric
Island County
Washington
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
17.5 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
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
14.1%
19.8%
15.0%
Walked
3.7%
3.0%
2.4%
Public Transit
2.1%
3.4%
3.2%
The average commute time in Island County is 17.5 minutes, shorter than the 22.4 minutes in Washington.
2.1% commute by public transit, lower than the 3.4% in Washington. 3.7% commute by walking, higher than the 3.0% in Washington.
Island County, WA Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Island County, WA is the 5th largest of the 6 counties compared here, 86,836 residents against a local median of 230,493. Where Island County, WA breaks from the counties next to it is one-way commute, sitting 17% below the local median of 21.1 min at 17.5 min. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves spread 15.9 min on one-way commute, so Island County, WA sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Island County, WA has the 2nd lowest one-way commute of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Island County, Washington.
Is commuting expensive in Island County, Washington?
Commuters here spend an estimated 146 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $4,520 at a typical national wage. That's 22% less than the typical Washington commuter spends.
What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Island County, Washington?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Island County, Washington. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Which counties in Washington have the fastest and slowest commutes?
Among counties in Washington, the shortest average commutes are in Walla Walla County (12.2 min), San Juan County (12.3 min), Asotin County (13.2 min). The longest are in Mason County (32.0 min), Garfield County (28.4 min), Snohomish County (28.3 min).