Work & commute · East Chicago

Work & commute in East Chicago, IN

Most working residents leave East Chicago for work: only 16% work in town. The top destinations are Chicago (14%), Hammond (10%) and Gary (5%). Half commute less than 13 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

16%

1,402 of 8,534 working residents

Typical commute

13 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

21 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 7,132 East Chicago residents head out of town to work, 1,402 work right here, and 12,093 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in East Chicago.

7,132live here, work elsewhere

1,402live and work here

12,093work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where East Chicago goes to work

East Chicago (in town)right here

16%1,402

Chicago, IL17.7 mi away

14%1,210

Hammond2.9 mi away

10%895

Gary6.8 mi away

5%459

Munster7.5 mi away

3%265

Merrillville14 mi away

3%224

Schererville11.3 mi away

2%188

Highland7 mi away

2%179

Crown Point17.4 mi away

2%154

Hobart13 mi away

2%129

Everywhere elseother towns and states

40%3,429

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

How far

How far East Chicago commutes

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

44%

32%

10%

14%

44%Under 10 mi

32%10–24 mi

10%25–50 mi

14%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

East Chicago is a job hub

1.58jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in East Chicago are

13,495 jobs are based in East Chicago. Here is what they are, next to the jobs East Chicago’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in East Chicago

13,495 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)52%

Trade, transport & utilities12%

Services (health, schools, offices…)36%

$1,250 a month or less7%

$1,251–$3,333 a month18%

Over $3,333 a month75%

Jobs East Chicago residents hold

8,534 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)60%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month37%

Over $3,333 a month48%

−29%

Jobs based in East Chicago, 2013 → 2023: 19,071 → 13,495. 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.