Photo: Jim Roberts · CC BY-SA 4.0Dexter has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
There are 104 jobs in Dexter, against 318 working residents. Only 1% stay in Dexter for work; outside it, Des Moines is the main destination (19%, 32 miles). The trip to work takes 31 minutes on average, next to 20 for Iowa and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Dexter, in brief
Dexter’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Dexter is Des Moines, 32 miles away as the crow flies. 19% of working residents (59) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Dexter workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 31 minutes each way, against 20 across Iowa. Over a year that’s about 238 hours of commuting, 84 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 318 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The commute from Dexter, by distance
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.
Commuting from Dexter: about 31 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Dexter workers work from home, vs 11% across Iowa. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 294 commuters (the 12% 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 many people are in Dexter by day
On a workday 314 residents head out to work, 4 work right here, and 100 people come in from elsewhere.
About 430 people are in Dexter on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Where the trip to work from Dexter ends
Where Dexter clocks in
16% of workers
7% 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.
Jobs in Dexter: what the 104 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Dexter, 2013 → 2023: 66 → 104. 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 Dexter’s own residents hold wherever they work.
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 Dexter: questions
What is the median household income in Dexter?
$87,250 (±$19,477) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,059 across Iowa and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Dexter?
5.8%, against 11.1% across Iowa and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Dexter?
31 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Iowa and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Dexter work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Des Moines (19%, 32 mi), West Des Moines (16%, 23 mi), Adel (7%, 13 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Dexter without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and <1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Dexter, from the people who make the trip.
More of Dexter
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.