Work and commuting in Augusta
The average commute takes 27 minutes each way (Michigan 24, U.S. 26). 4% of workers have no commute at all (Michigan 14%). Only 2% work in Augusta itself; outside it, Battle Creek draws the most (17%, 7 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Augusta at work: what stands out
Augusta and Battle Creek trade workers both ways
Battle Creek is the top workplace for Augusta residents (17%) and also where the most people who work in Augusta come from (11% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Augusta
58% of Augusta residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 37% of the jobs based in Augusta pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 98% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Fewer jobs are based in Augusta than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Augusta fell from 466 in 2011 to 348 in 2021, −25%. 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 ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published; with 366 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Where Augusta’s working residents head each day
Where Augusta clocks in
17% of workers
14% 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.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in Augusta
348 jobs are based in Augusta.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Augusta, 2011 → 2021: 466 → 348. 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 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Augusta’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A workday in Augusta: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 358 residents head out to work, 8 work right here, and 340 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 (0.95 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
A commute of about 27 minutes in Augusta
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Augusta workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 370 commuters (the 4% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 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.
Augusta’s commute, mile by mile
About 17% 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 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
How Augusta compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Ross Township (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Augusta workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Augusta | – | — | — | 27 min | $59,500 |
| Charleston Township | under 2% | B+ | D | 20 min | $82,308 |
| Ross Township | 5% | A− | C− | 25 min | $103,932 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Augusta’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 2021, 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 Augusta: questions
What is the median household income in Augusta?
$59,500 (±$16,264) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Augusta?
7.0%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Augusta?
27 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Augusta work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Battle Creek (17%, 7 mi), Kalamazoo (14%, 13 mi), Portage (9%, 16 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Can you get around Augusta without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Augusta, from the people who make the trip.
More of Augusta
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, 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.