Work & commute · Colby

Work & commute in Colby, KS

56% of Colby’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Morgan (5%), Oakley (3%) and Hays (3%). Half commute less than 2 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

56%

1,441 of 2,590 working residents

Typical commute

2 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

10 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 1,149 Colby residents head out of town to work, 1,441 work right here, and 1,281 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Colby.

1,149live here, work elsewhere

1,441live and work here

1,281work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Colby goes to work

Colby (in town)right here

56%1,441

Morgan4.1 mi away

5%128

Oakley21 mi away

3%84

Hays98.7 mi away

3%71

Goodland35.8 mi away

2%58

Wichita231.6 mi away

2%51

Garden City97.9 mi away

1%37

Topeka287.3 mi away

1%35

Smith15.1 mi away

1%25

Salina188.1 mi away

1%24

Everywhere elseother towns and states

25%636

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

How far

How far Colby commutes

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

62%

25%

62%Under 10 mi

7%10–24 mi

6%25–50 mi

25%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Colby 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 Colby are

2,722 jobs are based in Colby. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Colby’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Colby

2,722 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)7%

Trade, transport & utilities31%

Services (health, schools, offices…)62%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month35%

Over $3,333 a month49%

Jobs Colby residents hold

2,590 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)13%

Trade, transport & utilities30%

Services (health, schools, offices…)57%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month33%

Over $3,333 a month50%

+3%

Jobs based in Colby, 2013 → 2023: 2,654 → 2,722. 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.