Work & commute · Newton

Work & commute in Newton, IA

About one in 3 of Newton’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Des Moines (11%), Grinnell (5%) and West Des Moines (4%). Half commute less than 23 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

32%

2,152 of 6,742 working residents

Typical commute

23 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

22 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

10%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 4,590 Newton residents head out of town to work, 2,152 work right here, and 4,051 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Newton.

4,590live here, work elsewhere

2,152live and work here

4,051work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Newton goes to work

Newton (in town)right here

32%2,152

Des Moines30.6 mi away

11%743

Grinnell16.5 mi away

5%314

West Des Moines39.6 mi away

4%286

Ankeny29 mi away

4%270

Urbandale38.4 mi away

3%189

Ames37.6 mi away

2%139

Altoona22.9 mi away

2%111

Marshalltown24.4 mi away

2%109

Pella21.1 mi away

1%100

Everywhere elseother towns and states

35%2,329

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

How far

How far Newton commutes

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

35%

16%

36%

12%

35%Under 10 mi

16%10–24 mi

36%25–50 mi

12%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Newton is balanced between jobs and homes

0.92jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.92 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Newton are

6,203 jobs are based in Newton. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Newton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Newton

6,203 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)25%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)54%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month53%

Jobs Newton residents hold

6,742 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)54%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month58%

−15%

Jobs based in Newton, 2013 → 2023: 7,260 → 6,203. 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.