Work & commute · Manhattan

Work & commute in Manhattan, KS

58% of Manhattan’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Topeka (6%), Junction City (3%) and Wichita (3%). Half commute less than 3 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

58%

10,335 of 17,845 working residents

Typical commute

3 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

17 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

13%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 7,510 Manhattan residents head out of town to work, 10,335 work right here, and 16,043 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Manhattan.

7,510live here, work elsewhere

10,335live and work here

16,043work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Manhattan goes to work

Manhattan (in town)right here

58%10,335

Topeka49.9 mi away

6%1,104

Junction City17.3 mi away

3%565

Wichita111.1 mi away

3%498

Salina60 mi away

2%319

Overland Park104.8 mi away

2%291

Blue7.5 mi away

2%283

Wamego15.9 mi away

2%279

Manhattan5.3 mi away

1%198

Lawrence73.6 mi away

1%189

Everywhere elseother towns and states

21%3,784

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

How far

How far Manhattan commutes

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

62%

23%

62%Under 10 mi

7%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

23%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Manhattan is balanced between jobs and homes

1.48jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.48 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Manhattan are

26,378 jobs are based in Manhattan. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Manhattan’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Manhattan

26,378 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities14%

Services (health, schools, offices…)76%

$1,250 a month or less20%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month51%

Jobs Manhattan residents hold

17,845 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)13%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)71%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month31%

Over $3,333 a month51%

−21%

Jobs based in Manhattan, 2013 → 2023: 33,579 → 26,378. 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.