Work & commute · Howard

Work & commute in Howard, MI

Most working residents leave Howard for work: only 3% work in town. The top destinations are Niles (11%), South Bend (11%) and Mishawaka (7%). Half commute less than 13 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2021 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

88 of 2,593 working residents

Typical commute

13 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

26 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 2,505 Howard residents head out of town to work, 88 work right here, and 361 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Howard.

2,505live here, work elsewhere

88live and work here

361work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Howard goes to work

Niles4.4 mi away

11%287

South Bend, IN13.4 mi away

11%279

Mishawaka, IN12.4 mi away

7%172

Elkhart, IN15.4 mi away

6%165

Niles6 mi away

6%155

Howard (in town)right here

3%88

Dowagiac9.3 mi away

3%71

Ontwa7.3 mi away

2%54

Buchanan10.4 mi away

2%44

LaGrange8.2 mi away

2%39

Everywhere elseother towns and states

48%1,239

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

How far

How far Howard commutes

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

33%

37%

21%

33%Under 10 mi

37%10–24 mi

8%25–50 mi

21%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Howard is a commuter town

0.17jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.17 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Howard are

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

Jobs based in Howard

449 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)28%

Trade, transport & utilities16%

Services (health, schools, offices…)57%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month32%

Over $3,333 a month53%

Jobs Howard residents hold

2,593 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)31%

Trade, transport & utilities22%

Services (health, schools, offices…)48%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month55%

+21%

Jobs based in Howard, 2011 → 2021: 372 → 449. 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 2021. Commute time and working from home: the Census American Community Survey.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, primary jobs; American Community Survey 5-year estimates.