Photo: Carl Wycoff · CC BY 2.0Earning a living in Beaver
13 jobs are based in Beaver for 22 working residents. 47% of workers have no commute at all, where Iowa as a whole has 11%. Only 5% work in Beaver itself; outside it, Boone draws the most (18%, 14 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
In and out of Beaver on a workday
On a workday 21 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 12 people come in from elsewhere.
About 40 people are in Beaver on a workday afternoon, 18% fewer than live here.
0.59 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.
Out of Beaver to work: where people go
Where Beaver clocks in
18% of workers
18% of workers
9% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
85% of the jobs in Beaver pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Beaver, 2013 → 2023: 16 → 13. 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.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Beaver’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Working from home in Beaver
of Beaver workers work from home, vs 11% across Iowa. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 10 commuters (the 47% who work from home are left out). Across Iowa: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
How far Beaver’s workers travel
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Beaver: questions
What is the median household income in Beaver?
$73,750 (±$65,152) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,059 across Iowa and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Beaver?
5.9%, against 11.1% across Iowa and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
Where do people who live in Beaver work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Boone (18%, 14 mi), Ames (18%, 27 mi), Ogden (9%, 6 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Beaver without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Beaver, from the people who make the trip.
More of Beaver
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.