Work & commute · Fairfield

Work & commute in Fairfield, IA

50% of Fairfield’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Ottumwa (3%), Des Moines (3%) and Mount Pleasant (2%). Half commute less than 2 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

50%

1,858 of 3,681 working residents

Typical commute

2 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

13 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

25%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 1,823 Fairfield residents head out of town to work, 1,858 work right here, and 3,189 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Fairfield.

1,823live here, work elsewhere

1,858live and work here

3,189work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Fairfield goes to work

Fairfield (in town)right here

50%1,858

Ottumwa23.8 mi away

3%126

Des Moines93.9 mi away

3%116

Mount Pleasant22.1 mi away

2%68

West Des Moines101.4 mi away

1%46

Cedar Rapids67.8 mi away

1%41

Iowa City50.2 mi away

1%35

Washington24.6 mi away

1%33

Maharishi Vedic City4.2 mi away

1%30

Ames110.9 mi away

1%29

Everywhere elseother towns and states

35%1,299

Lines run between town centers; a thicker line means more commuters. The top 10 towns each way.

How far

How far Fairfield commutes

Straight-line distance from home to work, for every working resident. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

62%

25%

62%Under 10 mi

8%10–24 mi

5%25–50 mi

25%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Fairfield is balanced between jobs and homes

1.37jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.37 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Fairfield are

5,047 jobs are based in Fairfield. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Fairfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Fairfield

5,047 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)20%

Trade, transport & utilities14%

Services (health, schools, offices…)67%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month33%

Over $3,333 a month50%

Jobs Fairfield residents hold

3,681 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month33%

Over $3,333 a month49%

−1%

Jobs based in Fairfield, 2013 → 2023: 5,115 → 5,047. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

About these numbers

How to read this page

Every worker, home to workThe Census links each worker’s home block to their main job’s block, for jobs covered by unemployment insurance. That’s most jobs, but not the self-employed.

Where the employer saysA job counts where the employer reports it. Some big employers report one address for many sites, which can make a few commutes look longer than they are.

Two surveysFlows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.