Work & commute · Wichita

Work & commute in Wichita, KS

67% of Wichita’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Riverside (4%), Waco (3%) and Overland Park (2%). Half commute less than 6 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

67%

112,152 of 166,445 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 54,293 Wichita residents head out of town to work, 112,152 work right here, and 78,432 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Wichita.

54,293live here, work elsewhere

112,152live and work here

78,432work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Wichita goes to work

Wichita (in town)right here

67%112,152

Riverside7.8 mi away

4%5,911

Waco7.8 mi away

3%5,773

Overland Park166.3 mi away

2%2,631

Derby10.3 mi away

2%2,582

Maize8.5 mi away

1%2,259

Park City8.3 mi away

1%2,209

Topeka129 mi away

1%2,157

Andover11.7 mi away

1%1,686

Goddard11.6 mi away

1%1,525

Everywhere elseother towns and states

17%27,560

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

How far

How far Wichita commutes

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

73%

13%

11%

73%Under 10 mi

13%10–24 mi

3%25–50 mi

11%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Wichita is balanced between jobs and homes

1.15jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.15 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Wichita are

190,584 jobs are based in Wichita. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Wichita’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Wichita

190,584 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities20%

Services (health, schools, offices…)63%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month53%

Jobs Wichita residents hold

166,445 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 month31%

Over $3,333 a month53%

+1%

Jobs based in Wichita, 2013 → 2023: 188,371 → 190,584. 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.