Work & commute · Oskaloosa

Work & commute in Oskaloosa, IA

About one in 3 of Oskaloosa’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Pella (6%), Ottumwa (4%) and Des Moines (4%). Half commute less than 17 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

32%

1,707 of 5,292 working residents

Typical commute

17 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

16 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 3,585 Oskaloosa residents head out of town to work, 1,707 work right here, and 3,824 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Oskaloosa.

3,585live here, work elsewhere

1,707live and work here

3,824work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Oskaloosa goes to work

Oskaloosa (in town)right here

32%1,707

Pella16.3 mi away

6%295

Ottumwa21.8 mi away

4%237

Des Moines53.8 mi away

4%197

West Des Moines61.7 mi away

2%114

Knoxville24 mi away

2%91

Ankeny58.2 mi away

1%63

Grinnell30.9 mi away

1%62

Cedar Rapids68 mi away

1%58

Ames71.7 mi away

1%54

Everywhere elseother towns and states

46%2,414

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

How far

How far Oskaloosa commutes

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

35%

24%

13%

27%

35%Under 10 mi

24%10–24 mi

13%25–50 mi

27%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Oskaloosa is balanced between jobs and homes

1.05jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.05 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Oskaloosa are

5,531 jobs are based in Oskaloosa. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Oskaloosa’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Oskaloosa

5,531 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)27%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)54%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month25%

Over $3,333 a month57%

Jobs Oskaloosa residents hold

5,292 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)35%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)48%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month25%

Over $3,333 a month59%

−1%

Jobs based in Oskaloosa, 2013 → 2023: 5,609 → 5,531. 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.