Guest, Sign inJoin
Work & commute in North Lake · A commuter town

100% of North Lake’s working residents leave town for work

Most working residents leave North Lake for work: only 0% work in town. The top destinations are Milwaukee (11%), Waukesha (7%) and Merton (7%). Half commute less than 15 miles.

Work in town
0%
0 of 108 working residents
Typical commute
15 mi
half travel less, straight-line
Time each way
21 min
Less than WI (22 min)
Work from home
9%
Less than WI (13%)
Jobs based here
31
A commuter town

What kind of work town is North Lake?

Read from the numbers below. The page puts what stands out first.

★ What stands out · The commute map

11% of working residents work in Milwaukee

A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.

RiverwoodsHatleyPalmyraChenequa: 4 residents work here (4%)CedarburgGraftonHartland: 5 residents work here (5%)HartfordOconomowoc: 3 residents work here (3%)Wauwatosa: 7 residents work here (6%)WatertownWaukesha: 8 residents work here (7%)Pewaukee: 6 residents work here (6%)Menomonee Falls: 4 residents work here (4%)Brookfield: 7 residents work here (6%)Milwaukee: 12 residents work here (11%)Merton: 8 residents work here (7%)North LakeMilwaukeeWaukeshaMertonWauwatosaBrookfieldPewaukeeNorth Lake
1
Milwaukee21.2 mi away
11%12
2
Waukesha11.8 mi away
7%8
3
Merton0.2 mi away
7%8
4
Wauwatosa17.9 mi away
6%7
5
Brookfield14.1 mi away
6%7
6
Pewaukee8.7 mi away
6%6
7
Hartland4 mi away
5%5
8
Chenequa2.3 mi away
4%4
9
Menomonee Falls12.4 mi away
4%4
10
Oconomowoc7.5 mi away
3%3
Everywhere elseother towns and states
41%44
The top trips

Where North Lake clocks in

Lines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.

Day and night

North Lake quiets down on a workday

On a workday 108 residents head out to work, 0 work right here, and 31 people come in from elsewhere.

108live here, work elsewhere
0live and work here
31work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night350
Workday270
350live here− 110head out to work+ 31come in to work= 270on a workday

About 270 people are in North Lake on a workday afternoon, 22% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.29jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

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

Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.

How far

Half of North Lake commutes less than 15 miles

Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.

10 mi25 mi30 miMilwaukee: 11% · 21.2 miWaukesha: 7% · 11.8 miMerton: 7% · 0.2 miWauwatosa: 6% · 17.9 miBrookfield: 6% · 14.1 miPewaukee: 6% · 8.7 miHartland: 5% · 4 miChenequa: 4% · 2.3 miMenomonee Falls: 4% · 12.4 miOconomowoc: 3% · 7.5 miMilwaukee 11%Waukesha 7%Merton 7%Brookfield 6%North Lake
North LakeTop destinations (size = commuters)
28%Under 10 mi30 residents
53%10–24 mi57 residents
11%25–50 mi12 residents
8%Over 50 mi9 residents

Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.

The jobs

North Lake makes things: 32% of its jobs are in goods

31 jobs are based in North Lake. Here is what they are, next to the jobs North Lake’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in North LakeJobs North Lake residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms32%15%
Trade, transport & utilities0%19%
Services: health, schools, offices68%67%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less6%14%
$1,251–$3,333 a month42%17%
Over $3,333 a month52%69%

Who does it

29 or younger19%16%
30 to 5458%44%
55 and older23%40%
−78%

Jobs based in North Lake, 2013 → 2023: 139 → 31. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.

Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.

Time on the road

About 21 minutes each way, about the WI average

From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.

A year of commuting
163 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

North Lake21 min
Wisconsin22 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
9%

of North Lake workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.

About 1 in 10
Next door

11% of North Lake works in a bordering town

The biggest share goes to Merton (7%). Darker towns draw more of North Lake’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%

Average commute minutes, one way

North Lake21 min
Merton24 min
Chenequa26 min
How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Every worker, home to work. The 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 says. A 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 surveys. Flows, distances and jobs: LEHD 2023. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: the Census American Community Survey.
  • Straight lines. Distances are as the crow flies between home and work. Roads, rivers and traffic make the real trip longer.
Beyond the commute

More of North Lake

North Lake home →

Commuter talk

Getting to work from North Lake, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Weigh in
Is the commute from North Lake worth it?

Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.

Ask neighbors

Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer.

Post to North Lake

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in