Work & commute · Emerald

Work & commute in Emerald, MN

Most working residents leave Emerald for work: only 2% work in town. The top destinations are Blue Earth (38%), Mankato (6%) and Fairmont (4%). Half commute less than 10 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

1 of 53 working residents

Typical commute

10 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

17%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 52 Emerald residents head out of town to work, 1 work right here, and 29 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Emerald.

52live here, work elsewhere

1live and work here

29work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Emerald goes to work

Blue Earth7.1 mi away

38%20

Mankato37.1 mi away

6%3

Fairmont25.3 mi away

4%2

Brush Creek7 mi away

4%2

Armstrong, IA31.1 mi away

2%1

Algona, IA41 mi away

2%1

Pemberton27.2 mi away

2%1

Bricelyn8.9 mi away

2%1

Kiester14.1 mi away

2%1

Frost3.8 mi away

2%1

Everywhere elseother towns and states

38%20

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

How far

How far Emerald commutes

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

50%

13%

21%

17%

50%Under 10 mi

13%10–24 mi

21%25–50 mi

17%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Emerald is a commuter town

0.57jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Emerald are

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

Jobs based in Emerald

30 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)23%

Trade, transport & utilities77%

Services (health, schools, offices…)0%

$1,250 a month or less13%

$1,251–$3,333 a month7%

Over $3,333 a month80%

Jobs Emerald residents hold

53 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)26%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)53%

$1,250 a month or less23%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month47%

+20%

Jobs based in Emerald, 2013 → 2023: 25 → 30. 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.