Work & commute · Mexico

Work & commute in Mexico, MO

40% of Mexico’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Columbia (14%), Jefferson City (4%) and Centralia (3%). Half commute less than 21 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

40%

1,852 of 4,629 working residents

Typical commute

21 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

19 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 2,777 Mexico residents head out of town to work, 1,852 work right here, and 3,941 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Mexico.

2,777live here, work elsewhere

1,852live and work here

3,941work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Mexico goes to work

Mexico (in town)right here

40%1,852

Columbia28.5 mi away

14%662

Jefferson City44.2 mi away

4%179

Centralia14.4 mi away

3%123

Fulton21.6 mi away

3%120

Kansas City143.5 mi away

2%70

Moberly35 mi away

1%64

Springfield156.2 mi away

1%48

St. Louis94.8 mi away

1%47

Sedalia79.8 mi away

1%25

Everywhere elseother towns and states

31%1,439

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

How far

How far Mexico commutes

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

43%

13%

23%

21%

43%Under 10 mi

13%10–24 mi

23%25–50 mi

21%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Mexico is balanced between jobs and homes

1.25jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.25 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Mexico are

5,793 jobs are based in Mexico. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Mexico’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Mexico

5,793 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)28%

Trade, transport & utilities24%

Services (health, schools, offices…)48%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month51%

Jobs Mexico residents hold

4,629 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)21%

Trade, transport & utilities24%

Services (health, schools, offices…)55%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month34%

Over $3,333 a month51%

−2%

Jobs based in Mexico, 2013 → 2023: 5,937 → 5,793. 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.