Work & commute · Helena

Work & commute in Helena, MN

Most working residents leave Helena for work: only 0% work in town. The top destinations are New Prague (20%), Shakopee (7%) and Burnsville (5%). Half commute less than 17 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

4 of 804 working residents

Typical commute

17 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

25 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

21%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 800 Helena residents head out of town to work, 4 work right here, and 116 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Helena.

800live here, work elsewhere

4live and work here

116work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Helena goes to work

New Prague3.1 mi away

20%160

Shakopee14 mi away

7%54

Burnsville19.7 mi away

5%37

Minneapolis30.5 mi away

4%34

Prior Lake12.2 mi away

4%31

Bloomington21.6 mi away

4%30

Eden Prairie19.3 mi away

4%29

Lakeville18 mi away

3%28

Jordan5.8 mi away

3%26

St. Paul34.7 mi away

2%20

Everywhere elseother towns and states

44%355

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

How far

How far Helena commutes

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

29%

44%

22%

29%Under 10 mi

44%10–24 mi

22%25–50 mi

5%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Helena is a commuter town

0.15jobs per working resident

A commuter town

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

The jobs

What the jobs in Helena are

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

Jobs based in Helena

120 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)30%

Trade, transport & utilities38%

Services (health, schools, offices…)33%

$1,250 a month or less36%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month37%

Jobs Helena residents hold

804 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)22%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)56%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month17%

Over $3,333 a month65%

−58%

Jobs based in Helena, 2013 → 2023: 283 → 120. 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.