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Work & commute · Center

Work & commute in Center, IN

About one in 5 of Center’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are La Porte (29%), Michigan City (12%) and South Bend (4%). Half commute less than 11 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times
Work in town
22%
2,329 of 10,457 working residents
Typical commute
11 mi
Half commute less than this, straight-line
Average commute time
22 min
One way, from the Census survey
Work from home
6%
of workers, from the Census survey
Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 8,128 Center residents head out of town to work, 2,329 work right here, and 7,232 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Center.

8,128live here, work elsewhere
2,329live and work here
7,232work here, live elsewhere
Leave for workStayCome in
The map

Where Center goes to work

ChicagoValparaisoLa PortePortageMichigan CitySouth BendKankakeeCoolspringCenterPleasantScipioSpringfieldNew BuffaloLa PorteMichigan CitySouth BendValparaisoPortageCoolspringChicagoNew BuffaloScipioCenter
1
La Porte2.9 mi away
29%3,029
2
Michigan City7.4 mi away
12%1,286
3
South Bend25.4 mi away
4%382
4
Valparaiso18.8 mi away
3%320
5
Center (in town)right here
2%233
6
Portage22 mi away
2%194
7
Coolspring6 mi away
2%160
8
Chicago, IL49.7 mi away
2%159
9
New Buffalo, MI10.4 mi away
1%155
10
Scipio5 mi away
1%146
Everywhere elseother towns and states
42%4,393

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

How far

How far Center commutes

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

45%Under 10 mi
23%10–24 mi
16%25–50 mi
16%Over 50 mi
Job hub or commuter town?

Center is balanced between jobs and homes

0.91jobs per working resident
Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.91 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Center are

9,561 jobs are based in Center. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Center’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Center

9,561 jobs
Goods (factories, building, farms)24%
Trade, transport & utilities14%
Services (health, schools, offices…)63%
$1,250 a month or less17%
$1,251–$3,333 a month29%
Over $3,333 a month54%

Jobs Center residents hold

10,457 working residents
Goods (factories, building, farms)30%
Trade, transport & utilities19%
Services (health, schools, offices…)51%
$1,250 a month or less15%
$1,251–$3,333 a month29%
Over $3,333 a month56%
−1%

Jobs based in Center, 2013 → 2023: 9,662 → 9,561. 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.

The porch light’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Center, INLaPorte CountyView boundary

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Center is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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