Work & commute · Leon

Work & commute in Leon, IA

About one in 5 of Leon’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Osceola (13%), West Des Moines (6%) and Des Moines (5%). Half commute less than 26 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

22%

181 of 831 working residents

Typical commute

26 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

27 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 650 Leon residents head out of town to work, 181 work right here, and 590 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Leon.

650live here, work elsewhere

181live and work here

590work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Leon goes to work

Leon (in town)right here

22%181

Osceola20.3 mi away

13%107

West Des Moines55.9 mi away

6%48

Des Moines57.9 mi away

5%41

Lamoni12.4 mi away

3%28

Ames89.1 mi away

2%16

Urbandale61.9 mi away

2%15

Corydon23 mi away

2%13

Ankeny68.9 mi away

1%12

Ottumwa72.3 mi away

1%11

Everywhere elseother towns and states

43%359

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

How far

How far Leon commutes

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

28%

22%

43%

28%Under 10 mi

22%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

43%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Leon is balanced between jobs and homes

0.93jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.93 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Leon are

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

Jobs based in Leon

771 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)4%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)80%

$1,250 a month or less20%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month48%

Jobs Leon residents hold

831 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)53%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month51%

+1%

Jobs based in Leon, 2013 → 2023: 763 → 771. 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.