Work & commute · Bismarck

Work & commute in Bismarck, ND

69% of Bismarck’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Mandan (8%), Fargo (3%) and Minot (2%). Half commute less than 3 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

69%

24,323 of 35,026 working residents

Typical commute

3 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

16 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 10,703 Bismarck residents head out of town to work, 24,323 work right here, and 26,547 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Bismarck.

10,703live here, work elsewhere

24,323live and work here

26,547work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Bismarck goes to work

Bismarck (in town)right here

69%24,323

Mandan5.7 mi away

8%2,633

Fargo186.2 mi away

3%1,111

Minot101.1 mi away

2%636

Grand Forks188.4 mi away

1%436

Dickinson96 mi away

1%337

Hay Creek4.3 mi away

1%239

Jamestown98.2 mi away

1%227

Williston164.6 mi away

1%217

West Fargo182.6 mi away

1%180

Everywhere elseother towns and states

13%4,687

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

How far

How far Bismarck commutes

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

81%

17%

81%Under 10 mi

1%10–24 mi

2%25–50 mi

17%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Bismarck is balanced between jobs and homes

1.45jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.45 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Bismarck are

50,870 jobs are based in Bismarck. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Bismarck’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Bismarck

50,870 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)9%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)72%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month22%

Over $3,333 a month63%

Jobs Bismarck residents hold

35,026 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)12%

Trade, transport & utilities19%

Services (health, schools, offices…)69%

$1,250 a month or less14%

$1,251–$3,333 a month23%

Over $3,333 a month63%

+1%

Jobs based in Bismarck, 2013 → 2023: 50,492 → 50,870. 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.