Work & commute · Nebraska

Work & commute in Nebraska, NE

About one in 3 of Nebraska’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Omaha (12%), Lincoln (10%) and Auburn (2%). Half commute less than 20 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

34%

1,219 of 3,551 working residents

Typical commute

20 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 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 2,332 Nebraska residents head out of town to work, 1,219 work right here, and 1,682 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Nebraska.

2,332live here, work elsewhere

1,219live and work here

1,682work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Nebraska goes to work

Nebraska City (in town)right here

34%1,219

Omaha41.8 mi away

12%427

Lincoln43.6 mi away

10%357

Auburn19.8 mi away

2%66

Papillion34.2 mi away

1%48

Columbus94.1 mi away

1%45

Syracuse16.8 mi away

1%40

Council Bluffs, IA38.7 mi away

1%37

Bellevue32.6 mi away

1%32

Hamburg, IA11.7 mi away

1%31

Everywhere elseother towns and states

35%1,249

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

How far

How far Nebraska commutes

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

44%

33%

14%

44%Under 10 mi

9%10–24 mi

33%25–50 mi

14%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Nebraska is balanced between jobs and homes

0.82jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.82 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Nebraska are

2,901 jobs are based in Nebraska. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Nebraska’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Nebraska

2,901 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)24%

Trade, transport & utilities17%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less21%

$1,251–$3,333 a month28%

Over $3,333 a month51%

Jobs Nebraska residents hold

3,551 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)27%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)50%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month30%

Over $3,333 a month54%

−14%

Jobs based in Nebraska, 2013 → 2023: 3,360 → 2,901. 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.