Work & commute · Bloomington

Work & commute in Bloomington, IN

About one in 3 of Bloomington’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Bloomington (44%), Center (7%) and Richland (3%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

32%

3,492 of 11,032 working residents

Typical commute

5 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

17 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

15%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 7,540 Bloomington residents head out of town to work, 3,492 work right here, and 25,140 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Bloomington.

7,540live here, work elsewhere

3,492live and work here

25,140work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Bloomington goes to work

Bloomington3.3 mi away

44%4,846

Center43.9 mi away

7%802

Richland5.8 mi away

3%368

Bloomington (in town)right here

3%284

Washington50.1 mi away

2%186

Pike47.8 mi away

2%176

Spencer14.8 mi away

2%171

Perry6.3 mi away

2%170

Carmel55.7 mi away

1%156

Columbus31.7 mi away

1%151

Everywhere elseother towns and states

34%3,722

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

How far

How far Bloomington commutes

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

55%

18%

23%

55%Under 10 mi

4%10–24 mi

18%25–50 mi

23%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Bloomington is a job hub

2.60jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Bloomington are

28,632 jobs are based in Bloomington. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Bloomington’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Bloomington

28,632 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)4%

Trade, transport & utilities5%

Services (health, schools, offices…)91%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month58%

Jobs Bloomington residents hold

11,032 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)70%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month53%

+4%

Jobs based in Bloomington, 2013 → 2023: 27,445 → 28,632. 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.