Work & commute · Chester

Work & commute in Chester, IN

About one in 3 of Chester’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are North Manchester (29%), Warsaw (9%) and Wabash (5%). Half commute less than 16 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

33%

921 of 2,832 working residents

Typical commute

16 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 1,911 Chester residents head out of town to work, 921 work right here, and 2,014 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Chester.

1,911live here, work elsewhere

921live and work here

2,014work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Chester goes to work

North Manchester2.9 mi away

29%810

Warsaw19.5 mi away

9%262

Wabash13.2 mi away

5%137

Chester (in town)right here

4%105

Fort Wayne31.6 mi away

3%95

Huntington13.6 mi away

3%80

Lafayette71.5 mi away

2%54

Pierceton15 mi away

1%40

Wayne17.5 mi away

1%38

Center85.8 mi away

1%37

Everywhere elseother towns and states

41%1,174

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

How far

How far Chester commutes

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

37%

29%

12%

22%

37%Under 10 mi

29%10–24 mi

12%25–50 mi

22%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Chester is balanced between jobs and homes

1.04jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.04 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Chester are

2,935 jobs are based in Chester. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Chester’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Chester

2,935 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)33%

Trade, transport & utilities13%

Services (health, schools, offices…)54%

$1,250 a month or less22%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month48%

Jobs Chester residents hold

2,832 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)35%

Trade, transport & utilities15%

Services (health, schools, offices…)50%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month50%

−10%

Jobs based in Chester, 2013 → 2023: 3,254 → 2,935. 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.