Work & commute · Appleton

Work & commute in Appleton, WI

About one in 4 of Appleton’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Grand Chute (11%), Neenah (6%) and Fox Crossing (6%). Half commute less than 6 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

25%

9,351 of 36,687 working residents

Typical commute

6 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

19 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

13%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 27,336 Appleton residents head out of town to work, 9,351 work right here, and 35,714 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Appleton.

27,336live here, work elsewhere

9,351live and work here

35,714work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Appleton goes to work

Appleton (in town)right here

25%9,351

Grand Chute3.4 mi away

11%3,958

Neenah9.1 mi away

6%2,197

Fox Crossing5.9 mi away

6%2,147

Oshkosh19.7 mi away

5%1,686

Green Bay26 mi away

3%1,185

Menasha5 mi away

3%1,156

Greenville7.9 mi away

3%1,009

Little Chute3.5 mi away

2%898

Kaukauna6.1 mi away

2%812

Everywhere elseother towns and states

33%12,288

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

How far

How far Appleton commutes

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

63%

16%

15%

63%Under 10 mi

16%10–24 mi

7%25–50 mi

15%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Appleton is balanced between jobs and homes

1.23jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.23 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Appleton are

45,065 jobs are based in Appleton. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Appleton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Appleton

45,065 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)18%

Trade, transport & utilities14%

Services (health, schools, offices…)68%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month60%

Jobs Appleton residents hold

36,687 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)25%

Trade, transport & utilities18%

Services (health, schools, offices…)57%

$1,250 a month or less15%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month60%

+0%

Jobs based in Appleton, 2013 → 2023: 45,046 → 45,065. 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.