Photo: Ashton B Crew · CC BY 3.0Melbourne has 0.2 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Only 2% work in Melbourne; the top destination outside it is Marshalltown (24%, 12 miles). 69 jobs are based in Melbourne, and 361 of its residents work somewhere. Working residents average 28 minutes each way; Iowa averages 20, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Melbourne, in a few figures
Melbourne is a place people come home to
There are 69 jobs based in Melbourne, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Melbourne has about 470 people in it, 38% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Melbourne workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 28 minutes each way, against 20 across Iowa. Over a year that’s about 215 hours of commuting, 61 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 361 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The daily flow of workers through Melbourne
On a workday 353 residents head out to work, 8 work right here, and 61 people come in from elsewhere.
About 470 people are in Melbourne on a workday afternoon, 38% 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.
The daily trip from Melbourne: about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Melbourne workers work from home, vs 11% across Iowa. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 357 commuters (the 6% 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.
Where the trip to work from Melbourne ends
Where Melbourne clocks in
24% of workers
8% 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.
68% of the jobs in Melbourne pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Melbourne, 2013 → 2023: 62 → 69. 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 Melbourne’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Melbourne goes to work
About 22% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
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 Melbourne: questions
What is the median household income in Melbourne?
$71,667 (±$9,454) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,059 across Iowa and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Melbourne?
11.7%, against 11.1% across Iowa and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Melbourne?
28 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Iowa and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Melbourne work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Marshalltown (24%, 12 mi), Ames (8%, 27 mi), Des Moines (7%, 36 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Melbourne without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Melbourne, from the people who make the trip.
More of Melbourne
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.