Photo: PopePompus · CC BY-SA 4.0Patterson has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
5% of workers work from home; Iowa has 11%. Employers in Patterson report 26 jobs; 79 of its residents have a job. Hardly any work in Patterson itself; outside it, Des Moines draws the most (27%, 21 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Patterson quiets down on a workday
On a workday 79 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 26 people come in from elsewhere.
About 120 people are in Patterson on a workday afternoon, 30% 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 Patterson ends
Where Patterson clocks in
23% of workers
6% 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.
42% of the jobs in Patterson make or build things
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Patterson, 2013 → 2023: 7 → 26. 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 Patterson’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Patterson: about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Patterson workers work from home, vs 11% across Iowa. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 196 commuters (the 5% 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.
Miles to work from Patterson
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 Patterson: questions
What is the median household income in Patterson?
$82,969 (±$27,068) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,059 across Iowa and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Patterson?
6.9%, against 11.1% across Iowa and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Patterson?
28 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Iowa and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Patterson work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Des Moines (27%, 21 mi), West Des Moines (23%, 15 mi), Winterset (6%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Patterson 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 Patterson, from the people who make the trip.
More of Patterson
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.