Work & commute · Chesterton

Work & commute in Chesterton, IN

Most working residents leave Chesterton for work: only 14% work in town. The top destinations are Valparaiso (11%), Portage (6%) and Michigan City (5%). Half commute less than 12 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

14%

869 of 6,184 working residents

Typical commute

12 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

26 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

20%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 5,315 Chesterton residents head out of town to work, 869 work right here, and 5,646 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Chesterton.

5,315live here, work elsewhere

869live and work here

5,646work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Chesterton goes to work

Chesterton (in town)right here

14%869

Valparaiso8.3 mi away

11%685

Portage6.5 mi away

6%368

Michigan City12.3 mi away

5%334

Porter2.4 mi away

5%326

Gary15.1 mi away

4%276

Chicago, IL36.4 mi away

4%259

Hammond22.8 mi away

3%211

Merrillville16.2 mi away

3%199

Hobart12.9 mi away

2%147

Everywhere elseother towns and states

41%2,510

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

How far

How far Chesterton commutes

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

42%

34%

10%

13%

42%Under 10 mi

34%10–24 mi

10%25–50 mi

13%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Chesterton 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 Chesterton are

6,515 jobs are based in Chesterton. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Chesterton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Chesterton

6,515 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)16%

Trade, transport & utilities14%

Services (health, schools, offices…)70%

$1,250 a month or less19%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month51%

Jobs Chesterton residents hold

6,184 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)23%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month61%

+22%

Jobs based in Chesterton, 2013 → 2023: 5,360 → 6,515. 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.