Work & commute · Altoona

Work & commute in Altoona, WI

Most working residents leave Altoona for work: only 10% work in town. The top destinations are Eau Claire (45%), Chippewa Falls (6%) and Union (5%). Half commute less than 5 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

10%

393 of 3,831 working residents

Typical commute

5 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

18 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

12%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 3,438 Altoona residents head out of town to work, 393 work right here, and 4,365 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Altoona.

3,438live here, work elsewhere

393live and work here

4,365work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Altoona goes to work

Eau Claire3 mi away

45%1,719

Altoona (in town)right here

10%393

Chippewa Falls9.6 mi away

6%213

Union7.8 mi away

5%188

Menomonie23.8 mi away

3%111

Lake Hallie6.2 mi away

3%96

Washington4.5 mi away

2%87

La Crosse68.2 mi away

1%46

Madison154.9 mi away

1%34

Osseo18.8 mi away

1%30

Everywhere elseother towns and states

24%914

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

How far

How far Altoona commutes

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

69%

10%

17%

69%Under 10 mi

10%10–24 mi

4%25–50 mi

17%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Altoona is balanced between jobs and homes

1.24jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.24 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Altoona are

4,758 jobs are based in Altoona. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Altoona’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Altoona

4,758 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)14%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)67%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month23%

Over $3,333 a month62%

Jobs Altoona residents hold

3,831 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)19%

Trade, transport & utilities21%

Services (health, schools, offices…)60%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month61%

+66%

Jobs based in Altoona, 2013 → 2023: 2,867 → 4,758. 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.