Work & commute · Osceola

Work & commute in Osceola, IA

44% of Osceola’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Des Moines (6%), West Des Moines (4%) and Ankeny (2%). Half commute less than 24 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

44%

1,077 of 2,447 working residents

Typical commute

24 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 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 1,370 Osceola residents head out of town to work, 1,077 work right here, and 2,711 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Osceola.

1,370live here, work elsewhere

1,077live and work here

2,711work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Osceola goes to work

Osceola (in town)right here

44%1,077

Des Moines38.3 mi away

6%144

West Des Moines35.6 mi away

4%109

Ankeny49.1 mi away

2%51

Urbandale41.6 mi away

2%48

Creston30.2 mi away

2%41

Chariton24.9 mi away

2%40

Ames69 mi away

1%34

Altoona45.4 mi away

1%24

Iowa City124.6 mi away

1%24

Everywhere elseother towns and states

35%855

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

How far

How far Osceola commutes

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

46%

26%

23%

46%Under 10 mi

5%10–24 mi

26%25–50 mi

23%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Osceola is a job hub

1.55jobs per working resident

A job hub

1.5 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Osceola are

3,788 jobs are based in Osceola. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Osceola’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Osceola

3,788 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)45%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)38%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month59%

Jobs Osceola residents hold

2,447 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)35%

Trade, transport & utilities24%

Services (health, schools, offices…)41%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month57%

+9%

Jobs based in Osceola, 2013 → 2023: 3,461 → 3,788. 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.