Photo: w_lemay · CC BY-SA 2.0There are 2.2 jobs in Springfield for every working resident, and 75,034 people commute in
About two in three work in Springfield; the top destination outside it is Chicago (2%, 175 miles). Springfield has 104,756 jobs, and 46,780 of its residents work somewhere. For jobs and income Springfield is better than 31% of U.S. towns (C); for walkability it is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (A).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Springfield, in brief
The biggest group of Springfield’s workers comes from Chicago
5,817 of the people who work in Springfield live in Chicago, 175 miles away, more than from any other town. The commute map ↓
Commutes from Springfield are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 28 across Illinois. That’s about 84 hours a year less on the road than the typical Illinois worker. Time on the road ↓
Springfield is where the jobs are
Springfield has 104,756 jobs, 2.2 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 171,000 people are in town, 51% more than the 113,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Springfield draws workers from far and wide
The 104,756 jobs in Springfield are filled from a wide area. Springfield’s own residents hold 28% and the ten next-biggest home towns 17%; the other 55% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Springfield
Job access by car holds Springfield’s grade up (ahead of 71% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.8%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Springfield could be anywhere from C to C+.
Where Springfield’s workforce comes from
Where Springfield clocks in
2% 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 17 minutes each way, quicker than most of Illinois
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Springfield workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 42,759 commuters (the 14% 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 a workday changes Springfield
On a workday 17,058 residents head out to work and 29,722 work right here.
About 171,000 people are in Springfield on a workday afternoon, 51% more than live here.
2.2 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Springfield
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Springfield, 2013 → 2023: 102,723 → 104,756. 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 Springfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How many miles Springfield commutes
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.
Springfield is easy on foot, hard by bus
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 4.2% 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 50,004 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 81% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 50% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 10.3% of Springfield households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 2% of Springfield’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
Ranked on jobs and income, Springfield is 321st among 375 U.S. towns of 79,000 to 153,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | South Jordan UT | 87,614 | $134K | 3.7% | 2.4% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Carmel IN | 105,634 | $142K | 3.9% | 2.7% | 23% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 10 | Wheatland Township IL | 92,693 | $173K | 3.2% | 4.0% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | Northfield Township IL | 89,835 | $137K | 7.1% | 3.5% | 16% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 31 | Lisle Township IL | 119,740 | $119K | 5.0% | 4.5% | 11% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 319 | Evansville IN | 116,176 | $53K | 18.4% | 5.1% | 60% | C |
| 320 | Lawrence MA | 89,320 | $60K | 17.6% | 8.5% | 22% | C |
| 321 | Springfield IL | 112,989 | $66K | 16.8% | 6.8% | 64% | C |
| 322 | Bryan TX | 91,996 | $59K | 23.0% | 5.0% | 32% | C |
| 323 | Capital Township IL | 111,143 | $66K | 16.9% | 6.8% | 62% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 375 | Flint MI | 79,306 | $38K | 34.1% | 14.8% | 20% | 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 Springfield, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
How Springfield compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Springfield Township (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Springfield workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springfield | – | C | A | 17 min | $66,064 |
| Capital Township | under 1% | C | A | 17 min | $65,902 |
| Springfield Township | 1% | D | B+ | 15 min | $39,507 |
| Curran Township | under 1% | A | D | 17 min | $102,857 |
| Ball Township | under 1% | A | B | 27 min | $140,753 |
| Gardner Township | under 1% | A− | D | 19 min | $103,932 |
| Rochester Township | under 1% | A | C− | 22 min | $114,551 |
| Clear Lake Township | under 1% | A− | C+ | 24 min | $86,473 |
| Woodside Township | 1% | B | A | 18 min | $73,007 |
| Chatham | under 1% | A− | B+ | 23 min | $106,773 |
| Sherman | under 1% | A | B− | 21 min | $148,906 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Springfield’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 Springfield: questions
What is the median household income in Springfield?
$66,064 (±$3,378) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Springfield?
16.8%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Springfield?
17 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Springfield work?
64% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (2%, 175 mi), Decatur (1%, 38 mi), Peoria (1%, 66 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Springfield walkable?
Springfield is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.7 out of 20, and 4% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Springfield without a car?
2% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. 50% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Springfield, from the people who make the trip.
More of Springfield
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.