Work & commute · Seward

Work & commute in Seward, NE

About one in 3 of Seward’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Lincoln (31%), Omaha (8%) and York (2%). Half commute less than 21 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

32%

1,065 of 3,303 working residents

Typical commute

21 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

22 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 2,238 Seward residents head out of town to work, 1,065 work right here, and 2,040 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Seward.

2,238live here, work elsewhere

1,065live and work here

2,040work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Seward goes to work

Seward (in town)right here

32%1,065

Lincoln23 mi away

31%1,028

Omaha59.5 mi away

8%251

York26.1 mi away

2%69

Grand Island65.9 mi away

1%43

Milford9.7 mi away

1%36

David City23.8 mi away

1%35

Columbus38.9 mi away

1%31

Crete21 mi away

1%26

Papillion55.5 mi away

1%24

Everywhere elseother towns and states

21%695

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

How far

How far Seward commutes

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

36%

31%

13%

19%

36%Under 10 mi

31%10–24 mi

13%25–50 mi

19%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Seward is balanced between jobs and homes

0.94jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (0.94 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Seward are

3,105 jobs are based in Seward. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Seward’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Seward

3,105 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)31%

Trade, transport & utilities9%

Services (health, schools, offices…)59%

$1,250 a month or less19%

$1,251–$3,333 a month22%

Over $3,333 a month58%

Jobs Seward residents hold

3,303 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)19%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)62%

$1,250 a month or less17%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month59%

−8%

Jobs based in Seward, 2013 → 2023: 3,365 → 3,105. 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.