Jobs, income and commuting in Whitewater, KS
About one in ten stay in Whitewater for work; outside it, Wichita is the main destination (33%, 22 miles). Working from home is the commute for 3% of workers, against 12% across Kansas. Commuters spend 23 minutes getting to work on average, against 20 across Kansas and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Whitewater stands out on work
Whitewater and Wichita trade workers both ways
Wichita is the top workplace for Whitewater residents (33%) and also where the most people who work in Whitewater come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Whitewater than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Whitewater fell from 358 in 2013 to 205 in 2023, −43%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Few Whitewater workers work from home
Only 3% of workers work from home, against 12% across Kansas. Almost everyone here travels to a job. 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 254 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Commuting out of Whitewater: the destinations
Where Whitewater clocks in
33% 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.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Whitewater
205 jobs are based in Whitewater.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Whitewater, 2013 → 2023: 358 → 205. 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 Whitewater’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How long Whitewater spends getting to work: about 23 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Whitewater workers work from home, vs 12% across Kansas. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 400 commuters (the 3% who work from home are left out). Across Kansas: 85% 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.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 233 residents head out to work, 21 work right here, and 184 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 (0.81 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.
The commute from Whitewater, by distance
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.
The towns around Whitewater
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Whitewater workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitewater | – | — | — | 23 min | $65,208 |
| Milton Township | under 2% | B− | B | 23 min | $54,323 |
| Richland Township | under 2% | — | — | — | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Richland Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Whitewater’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 Whitewater: questions
What is the median household income in Whitewater?
$65,208 (±$31,053) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $74,275 across Kansas and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Whitewater?
4.0%, against 11.3% across Kansas and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Whitewater?
23 minutes each way on average, against 20 across Kansas and 26 nationally. 3% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Whitewater work?
8% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Wichita (33%, 22 mi), El Dorado (8%, 18 mi), Newton (4%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Whitewater 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 Whitewater, from the people who make the trip.
More of Whitewater
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.