Photo: Jet Lowe · Public domainHouseholds in Minooka have higher incomes than those in 86% of U.S. towns
Below the poverty line: 2.6% of residents, against 11.8% across Illinois. Jobs and income earn Minooka A; getting around on foot earns it C. Only 7% work in Minooka; the top destination outside it is Joliet (11%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Minooka, in brief
Minooka has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Minooka went from 3,008 in 2013 to 5,116 in 2023, +70%. The jobs ↓
Stores, warehouses and trucking
48% of the jobs in Minooka are in trade, transport and utilities, against 27% of the jobs its residents hold. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Why Minooka gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Minooka is better than 89% of U.S. towns, #128 of 768 in Illinois. The poverty rate is its strongest input; unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (4.2%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Minooka could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
What work there is in Minooka: 5,116 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Minooka, 2013 → 2023: 3,008 → 5,116. 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 Minooka’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who commutes out of Minooka, and who commutes in
On a workday 6,094 residents head out to work, 466 work right here, and 4,650 people come in from elsewhere.
About 11,000 people are in Minooka on a workday afternoon, 11% fewer than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (0.78 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.
Commuting out of Minooka: the destinations
Where Minooka clocks in
11% of workers
10% of workers
4% 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.
About 32 minutes each way for Minooka’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 10.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Minooka workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 6,009 commuters (the 10% who work from home are left out). Across Illinois: 78% drive alone, 7% 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 it is to work from Minooka
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.
Most of Minooka commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Minooka is more walkable than 34% of U.S. towns, #634 of 768 in Illinois. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 10.8% across Illinois.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 6,695 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 0.5% of Minooka households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Minooka’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Minooka is 412th among 2,354 U.S. towns of 9,000 to 17,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | New Albany OH | 11,803 | $238K | 1.4% | 0.9% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 24 | Western Springs IL | 13,588 | $230K | 1.3% | 3.1% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 38 | La Grange IL | 15,935 | $160K | 4.6% | 2.2% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 40 | Riverside Township IL | 16,083 | $122K | 4.5% | 1.8% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 410 | West Bradford Township PA | 14,780 | $161K | 3.1% | 4.7% | 4% | A |
| 411 | Manteno IL | 9,201 | $98K | 3.5% | 2.9% | 9% | A |
| 412 | Minooka IL | 12,899 | $115K | 2.6% | 4.2% | 7% | A |
| 413 | Somerville NJ | 14,665 | $104K | 5.9% | 3.4% | 7% | A |
| 414 | Easttown Township PA | 11,090 | $215K | 7.2% | 4.0% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,354 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Minooka, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Minooka and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Channahon (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Minooka workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minooka | – | A | C | 32 min | $115,445 |
| Channahon | 4% | B+ | C | 30 min | $119,494 |
| Aux Sable Township | under 2% | A− | C+ | 31 min | $109,269 |
| Seward Township | under 2% | A | C | 40 min | $121,548 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Minooka’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
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 Minooka: questions
What is the median household income in Minooka?
$115,445 (±$14,903) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Minooka?
2.6%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Minooka?
32 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Minooka work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Joliet (11%, 8 mi), Chicago (10%, 41 mi), Channahon (4%, 2 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Minooka walkable?
Minooka is more walkable than 34% of U.S. towns (Walkability C): an EPA walkability index of 6.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Minooka without a car?
1% 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 Minooka, from the people who make the trip.
More of Minooka
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. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.