Work & commute · Fort Dodge

Work & commute in Fort Dodge, IA

51% of Fort Dodge’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Des Moines (2%), Humboldt (2%) and Ames (2%). Half commute less than 3 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

51%

4,869 of 9,507 working residents

Typical commute

3 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

19 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 4,638 Fort Dodge residents head out of town to work, 4,869 work right here, and 7,767 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Fort Dodge.

4,638live here, work elsewhere

4,869live and work here

7,767work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Fort Dodge goes to work

Fort Dodge (in town)right here

51%4,869

Des Moines71 mi away

2%219

Humboldt14.9 mi away

2%200

Ames43.8 mi away

2%189

Webster City18.5 mi away

2%172

West Des Moines69.3 mi away

1%104

Ankeny61.3 mi away

1%87

Sioux City112.8 mi away

1%84

Storm Lake52.7 mi away

1%73

Urbandale63.7 mi away

1%70

Everywhere elseother towns and states

36%3,440

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

How far

How far Fort Dodge commutes

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

61%

22%

61%Under 10 mi

9%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

22%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Fort Dodge is balanced between jobs and homes

1.33jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.33 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Fort Dodge are

12,636 jobs are based in Fort Dodge. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Fort Dodge’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Fort Dodge

12,636 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)16%

Trade, transport & utilities26%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month27%

Over $3,333 a month56%

Jobs Fort Dodge residents hold

9,507 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)53%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month57%

−7%

Jobs based in Fort Dodge, 2013 → 2023: 13,600 → 12,636. 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.