Photo: Farragutful · CC BY-SA 4.0With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of Rapids City works elsewhere
There are 139 jobs in Rapids City for 477 working residents. Only 1% stay in Rapids City for work; outside it, Davenport is the main destination (15%, 14 miles). Working from home is the commute for 8% of workers, where Illinois as a whole has 16%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Rapids City, in brief
A lot of Rapids City workers cross into Iowa
33% of Rapids City workers work outside Illinois, the Census survey finds. In the commute data, Davenport (15%), Bettendorf (5%) and Dubuque (3%) are among the top workplaces. The commute map ↓
Rapids City is a place people come home to
There are 139 jobs based in Rapids City, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Rapids City has about 600 people in it, 36% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Rapids City are quick
The average trip to work takes 21 minutes, against 28 across Illinois. That’s about 54 hours a year less on the road than the typical Illinois 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 477 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Commuting out of Rapids City: the destinations
Where Rapids City clocks in
15% of workers
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.
Rapids City by day and by night
On a workday 472 residents head out to work, 5 work right here, and 134 people come in from elsewhere.
About 600 people are in Rapids City on a workday afternoon, 36% 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 Rapids City: about 21 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Rapids City workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 396 commuters (the 8% 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.
42% of the jobs in Rapids City make or build things
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Rapids City, 2013 → 2023: 23 → 139. 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 Rapids City’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The distance from Rapids City to work
About 23% 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.
Around Rapids City: the bordering towns
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Rapids City workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapids City | – | — | — | 21 min | $83,125 |
| Port Byron | under 3% | A− | B | 22 min | $111,667 |
| Port Byron Township | under 3% | B | B | 21 min | $77,083 |
| Hampton Township | under 3% | C+ | B+ | 20 min | $63,933 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Rapids City’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 Rapids City: questions
What is the median household income in Rapids City?
$83,125 (±$14,993) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Rapids City?
3.3%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Rapids City?
21 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Rapids City work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Davenport (15%, 14 mi), East Moline (8%, 5 mi), Moline (7%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Rapids City 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 Rapids City, from the people who make the trip.
More of Rapids City
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.