Work & commute · Decatur

Work & commute in Decatur, IL

53% of Decatur’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Springfield (5%), Chicago (3%) and Forsyth (2%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

53%

13,696 of 26,044 working residents

Typical commute

5 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 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 12,348 Decatur residents head out of town to work, 13,696 work right here, and 21,036 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Decatur.

12,348live here, work elsewhere

13,696live and work here

21,036work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Decatur goes to work

Decatur (in town)right here

53%13,696

Springfield38 mi away

5%1,173

Chicago151.6 mi away

3%674

Forsyth5.1 mi away

2%502

Peoria71.6 mi away

2%498

Bloomington42.9 mi away

1%382

Champaign39.2 mi away

1%355

Mount Zion5.6 mi away

1%348

Mount Zion9.1 mi away

1%307

Carbondale148.3 mi away

1%287

Everywhere elseother towns and states

30%7,822

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

How far

How far Decatur commutes

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

60%

14%

24%

60%Under 10 mi

2%10–24 mi

14%25–50 mi

24%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Decatur is balanced between jobs and homes

1.33jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.33 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Decatur are

34,732 jobs are based in Decatur. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Decatur’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Decatur

34,732 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)31%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)49%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month62%

Jobs Decatur residents hold

26,044 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)24%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)58%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month54%

−1%

Jobs based in Decatur, 2013 → 2023: 35,017 → 34,732. 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.