Work & commute · Big Sky

Work & commute in Big Sky, MT

68% of Big Sky’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Bozeman (4%), Billings (2%) and Missoula (2%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

68%

1,339 of 1,966 working residents

Typical commute

5 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

19 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

26%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 627 Big Sky residents head out of town to work, 1,339 work right here, and 4,600 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Big Sky.

627live here, work elsewhere

1,339live and work here

4,600work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Big Sky goes to work

Big Sky (in town)right here

68%1,339

Bozeman32.3 mi away

4%84

Billings139.5 mi away

2%48

Missoula170.8 mi away

2%35

Bridger43.3 mi away

2%35

Ennis20.4 mi away

2%30

Helena98.2 mi away

1%18

Four Corners29.5 mi away

1%14

West Yellowstone42.5 mi away

1%10

Gallatin Gateway23.8 mi away

0%8

Everywhere elseother towns and states

18%345

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

How far

How far Big Sky commutes

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

70%

12%

70%Under 10 mi

6%10–24 mi

12%25–50 mi

12%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Big Sky is a job hub

3.02jobs per working resident

A job hub

3.0 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Big Sky are

5,939 jobs are based in Big Sky. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Big Sky’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Big Sky

5,939 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)6%

Trade, transport & utilities4%

Services (health, schools, offices…)90%

$1,250 a month or less22%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month47%

Jobs Big Sky residents hold

1,966 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)10%

Trade, transport & utilities12%

Services (health, schools, offices…)78%

$1,250 a month or less21%

$1,251–$3,333 a month26%

Over $3,333 a month53%

+290%

Jobs based in Big Sky, 2013 → 2023: 1,522 → 5,939. 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.