Jobs, pay and the trip to work in Wall Lake
About one in ten work in Wall Lake itself; outside it, Odebolt draws the most (9%, 9 miles). At 20 minutes each way, commutes from Wall Lake run about the Iowa average. 295 jobs are based in Wall Lake for 333 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The short version on getting to work from Wall Lake
Miles to work from Wall Lake
About 32% 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.
Who leaves Wall Lake for work, and who comes in
On a workday 305 residents head out to work, 28 work right here, and 267 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.89 per resident).
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 Wall Lake’s working residents head each day
Where Wall Lake clocks in
8% 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.
65% of the jobs in Wall Lake pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wall Lake, 2013 → 2023: 337 → 295. 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 Wall Lake’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Wall Lake: about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wall Lake workers work from home, vs 11% across Iowa. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 307 commuters (the 7% 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.
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 Wall Lake: questions
What is the median household income in Wall Lake?
$71,875 (±$14,752) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,059 across Iowa and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wall Lake?
6.4%, against 11.1% across Iowa and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wall Lake?
20 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Iowa and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wall Lake work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Odebolt (9%, 9 mi), Lake View (8%, 4 mi), Ida Grove (7%, 20 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Wall Lake 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 Wall Lake, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wall Lake
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.