Work & commute · Harlem

Work & commute in Harlem, IL

Most working residents leave Harlem for work: only 10% work in town. The top destinations are Rockford (34%), Loves Park (11%) and Machesney Park (6%). Half commute less than 9 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

10%

1,850 of 18,597 working residents

Typical commute

9 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

23 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 16,747 Harlem residents head out of town to work, 1,850 work right here, and 8,315 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Harlem.

16,747live here, work elsewhere

1,850live and work here

8,315work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Harlem goes to work

Rockford8.3 mi away

34%6,307

Loves Park1.9 mi away

11%1,983

Machesney Park2.2 mi away

6%1,164

Chicago75.8 mi away

4%741

Beloit, WI11.2 mi away

3%564

Belvidere8.3 mi away

3%559

Roscoe4.5 mi away

2%365

Janesville, WI22.3 mi away

2%284

South Beloit8.7 mi away

1%229

Rockton7.1 mi away

1%199

Everywhere elseother towns and states

33%6,202

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

How far

How far Harlem commutes

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

54%

14%

24%

54%Under 10 mi

14%10–24 mi

8%25–50 mi

24%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Harlem is a commuter town

0.55jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.55 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Harlem are

10,165 jobs are based in Harlem. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Harlem’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Harlem

10,165 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)33%

Trade, transport & utilities27%

Services (health, schools, offices…)40%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month55%

Jobs Harlem residents hold

18,597 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)52%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month61%

−1%

Jobs based in Harlem, 2013 → 2023: 10,265 → 10,165. 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.