Work & commute · Topeka

Work & commute in Topeka, KS

Most working residents leave Topeka for work: only 5% work in town. The top destinations are Topeka (60%), Lawrence (4%) and Soldier (3%). Half commute less than 6 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

18 of 345 working residents

Typical commute

6 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 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 327 Topeka residents head out of town to work, 18 work right here, and 2,359 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Topeka.

327live here, work elsewhere

18live and work here

2,359work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Topeka goes to work

Topeka4.3 mi away

60%207

Topeka (in town)right here

5%18

Lawrence21.3 mi away

4%15

Soldier12.2 mi away

3%10

Lenexa46 mi away

2%7

Overland Park52.5 mi away

2%7

Mission6.8 mi away

2%7

Williamsport5.1 mi away

2%6

Leavenworth46 mi away

1%3

Wichita127.7 mi away

1%3

Everywhere elseother towns and states

18%62

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

How far

How far Topeka commutes

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

73%

12%

73%Under 10 mi

7%10–24 mi

8%25–50 mi

12%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Topeka is a job hub

6.89jobs per working resident

A job hub

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Topeka are

2,377 jobs are based in Topeka. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Topeka’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Topeka

2,377 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)9%

Trade, transport & utilities83%

Services (health, schools, offices…)8%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month37%

Over $3,333 a month46%

Jobs Topeka residents hold

345 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)18%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month53%

+113%

Jobs based in Topeka, 2013 → 2023: 1,118 → 2,377. 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.