Work & commute · DeKalb

Work & commute in DeKalb, IL

About one in 4 of DeKalb’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Sycamore (8%), Chicago (5%) and Rockford (3%). Half commute less than 24 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

25%

3,780 of 15,151 working residents

Typical commute

24 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

24 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 11,371 DeKalb residents head out of town to work, 3,780 work right here, and 10,391 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in DeKalb.

11,371live here, work elsewhere

3,780live and work here

10,391work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where DeKalb goes to work

DeKalb (in town)right here

25%3,780

Sycamore6 mi away

8%1,274

Chicago55 mi away

5%774

Rockford28 mi away

3%419

Aurora26.2 mi away

3%405

Elgin23 mi away

2%336

DeKalb1.3 mi away

2%293

Naperville32.6 mi away

2%280

Geneva21.7 mi away

2%240

St. Charles22.5 mi away

1%195

Everywhere elseother towns and states

47%7,155

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

How far

How far DeKalb commutes

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

37%

14%

31%

17%

37%Under 10 mi

14%10–24 mi

31%25–50 mi

17%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

DeKalb is balanced between jobs and homes

0.94jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.94 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in DeKalb are

14,171 jobs are based in DeKalb. Here is what they are, next to the jobs DeKalb’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in DeKalb

14,171 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities31%

Services (health, schools, offices…)58%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month55%

Jobs DeKalb residents hold

15,151 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities24%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month55%

−9%

Jobs based in DeKalb, 2013 → 2023: 15,612 → 14,171. 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.