Work & commute · Big Bend

Work & commute in Big Bend, WI

Most working residents leave Big Bend for work: only 1% work in town. The top destinations are Ladysmith (15%), Eau Claire (10%) and Rice Lake (9%). Half commute less than 22 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

1 of 175 working residents

Typical commute

22 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

49 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 174 Big Bend residents head out of town to work, 1 work right here, and 20 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Big Bend.

174live here, work elsewhere

1live and work here

20work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Big Bend goes to work

Ladysmith14.4 mi away

15%27

Eau Claire36.9 mi away

10%17

Rice Lake21.9 mi away

9%15

Bruce9 mi away

5%9

Chetek15.3 mi away

3%5

Chippewa Falls28.2 mi away

2%4

Thornapple9.1 mi away

2%4

Cameron19.8 mi away

2%3

Bloomer18 mi away

2%3

Menomonie41.8 mi away

2%3

Everywhere elseother towns and states

49%85

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

How far

How far Big Bend commutes

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

49%

24%

21%

6%Under 10 mi

49%10–24 mi

24%25–50 mi

21%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Big Bend is a commuter town

0.12jobs per working resident

A commuter town

0.12 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.

The jobs

What the jobs in Big Bend are

21 jobs are based in Big Bend. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Big Bend’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Big Bend

21 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)19%

Trade, transport & utilities43%

Services (health, schools, offices…)38%

$1,250 a month or less43%

$1,251–$3,333 a month14%

Over $3,333 a month43%

Jobs Big Bend residents hold

175 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)34%

Trade, transport & utilities22%

Services (health, schools, offices…)44%

$1,250 a month or less18%

$1,251–$3,333 a month27%

Over $3,333 a month55%

+250%

Jobs based in Big Bend, 2013 → 2023: 6 → 21. 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.