Work & commute · Center

Work & commute in Center, IN

About one in 4 of Center’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Valparaiso (29%), Merrillville (5%) and Portage (5%). Half commute less than 13 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

27%

5,512 of 20,202 working residents

Typical commute

13 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

25 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

10%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 14,690 Center residents head out of town to work, 5,512 work right here, and 15,774 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Center.

14,690live here, work elsewhere

5,512live and work here

15,774work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Center goes to work

Valparaiso1.2 mi away

29%5,817

Merrillville12.6 mi away

5%969

Portage9.5 mi away

5%927

Chicago, IL40.2 mi away

4%805

Gary16.2 mi away

4%753

Chesterton8.6 mi away

3%662

Crown Point14.9 mi away

3%641

Hobart10.8 mi away

3%631

Michigan City19.3 mi away

3%529

Hammond23.9 mi away

2%458

Everywhere elseother towns and states

40%8,010

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.

42%

34%

10%

14%

42%Under 10 mi

34%10–24 mi

10%25–50 mi

14%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Center is balanced between jobs and homes

1.05jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.05 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Center are

21,286 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

21,286 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)6%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)75%

$1,250 a month or less22%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month47%

Jobs Center residents hold

20,202 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)20%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)61%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month23%

Over $3,333 a month62%

−0%

Jobs based in Center, 2013 → 2023: 21,316 → 21,286. 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.