Work & commute · Marshalltown

Work & commute in Marshalltown, IA

47% of Marshalltown’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Des Moines (5%), Ames (3%) and Cedar Rapids (3%). Half commute less than 13 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

47%

5,569 of 11,863 working residents

Typical commute

13 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

17 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 6,294 Marshalltown residents head out of town to work, 5,569 work right here, and 7,662 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Marshalltown.

6,294live here, work elsewhere

5,569live and work here

7,662work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Marshalltown goes to work

Marshalltown (in town)right here

47%5,569

Des Moines48.3 mi away

5%567

Ames36.7 mi away

3%361

Cedar Rapids63.2 mi away

3%300

West Des Moines56.1 mi away

2%256

Ottumwa74.3 mi away

2%248

Waterloo42.5 mi away

2%229

Urbandale52.7 mi away

2%217

Grinnell22.7 mi away

2%215

Tama17.7 mi away

2%207

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%3,694

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

How far

How far Marshalltown commutes

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

49%

19%

24%

49%Under 10 mi

8%10–24 mi

19%25–50 mi

24%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Marshalltown is balanced between jobs and homes

1.12jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.12 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Marshalltown are

13,231 jobs are based in Marshalltown. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Marshalltown’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Marshalltown

13,231 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)33%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)49%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month61%

Jobs Marshalltown residents hold

11,863 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)35%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)47%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month58%

−19%

Jobs based in Marshalltown, 2013 → 2023: 16,316 → 13,231. 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.