Work & commute · Onalaska

Work & commute in Onalaska, WI

Most working residents leave Onalaska for work: only 18% work in town. The top destinations are La Crosse (45%), West Salem (3%) and Holmen (3%). Half commute less than 6 miles.

Census LEHD commute flows, 2023 Census ACS commute times

Work in town

18%

1,558 of 8,626 working residents

Typical commute

6 mi

Half commute less than this, straight-line

Average commute time

17 min

One way, from the Census survey

Work from home

11%

of workers, from the Census survey

Coming and going

Who leaves, who stays, who comes in

On a workday 7,068 Onalaska residents head out of town to work, 1,558 work right here, and 10,186 people come in from elsewhere to fill jobs in Onalaska.

7,068live here, work elsewhere

1,558live and work here

10,186work here, live elsewhere

Leave for workStayCome in

The map

Where Onalaska goes to work

La Crosse4.6 mi away

45%3,866

Onalaska (in town)right here

18%1,558

West Salem5.8 mi away

3%297

Holmen6.4 mi away

3%235

Onalaska4.4 mi away

2%160

Madison104.8 mi away

2%141

Sparta19.8 mi away

2%130

Winona, MN25.6 mi away

1%99

Eau Claire65.7 mi away

1%94

Campbell4.5 mi away

1%81

Everywhere elseother towns and states

23%1,965

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

How far

How far Onalaska commutes

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

74%

18%

74%Under 10 mi

4%10–24 mi

4%25–50 mi

18%Over 50 mi

Job hub or commuter town?

Onalaska is balanced between jobs and homes

1.36jobs per working resident

Balanced

About as many jobs as working residents (1.36 per resident).

The jobs

What the jobs in Onalaska are

11,744 jobs are based in Onalaska. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Onalaska’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Jobs based in Onalaska

11,744 jobs

Goods (factories, building, farms)9%

Trade, transport & utilities28%

Services (health, schools, offices…)64%

$1,250 a month or less22%

$1,251–$3,333 a month29%

Over $3,333 a month49%

Jobs Onalaska residents hold

8,626 working residents

Goods (factories, building, farms)17%

Trade, transport & utilities23%

Services (health, schools, offices…)60%

$1,250 a month or less16%

$1,251–$3,333 a month24%

Over $3,333 a month60%

+9%

Jobs based in Onalaska, 2013 → 2023: 10,746 → 11,744. 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.