Albert Lea has higher unemployment (5.7%) than 71% of U.S. towns
More than half work in Albert Lea itself; outside it, Austin draws the most (6%, 19 miles). Jobs and income earn Albert Lea C; getting around on foot earns it B+. 7% of workers have no commute at all, against 18% across Minnesota.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Albert Lea, in a few figures
Most jobs in Albert Lea go to people who live here
Of the 8,626 jobs based in Albert Lea, 47% are held by Albert Lea residents. In most towns, people from elsewhere hold most of the local jobs. Day and night ↓
Commutes from Albert Lea are quick
The average trip to work takes 18 minutes, against 23 across Minnesota. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Minnesota 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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Albert Lea
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Albert Lea is better than 28% of U.S. towns, #241 of 273 in Minnesota. All four inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Albert Lea’s grade.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Albert Lea could be anywhere from C− to C+.
The daily flow of workers through Albert Lea
On a workday 3,458 residents head out to work, 4,046 work right here, and 4,580 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 (1.15 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.
About 18 minutes each way for Albert Lea’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Albert Lea workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,379 commuters (the 7% who work from home are left out). Across Minnesota: 84% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Out of Albert Lea to work: where people go
Where Albert Lea clocks in
6% of workers
5% of workers
3% 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.
28% of the jobs in Albert Lea make or build things
8,626 jobs are based in Albert Lea.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Albert Lea, 2013 → 2023: 10,327 → 8,626. 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 Albert Lea’s own residents hold wherever they work.
How far Albert Lea goes to work
About 24% 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.
Most trips from Albert Lea start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Albert Lea is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns, #115 of 273 in Minnesota. Both inputs place Albert Lea near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 7,942 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). 7.8% of Albert Lea households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Albert Lea’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 1,915 U.S. towns of 13,000 to 25,000, Albert Lea comes 1,568th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 27 | Hugo MN | 17,167 | $116K | 2.8% | 1.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 48 | Otsego MN | 24,525 | $120K | 3.5% | 1.7% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,566 | Neosho MO | 14,078 | $58K | 15.2% | 4.5% | 28% | C |
| 1,567 | Hope Mills NC | 18,324 | $66K | 14.1% | 8.2% | 5% | C |
| 1,568 | Albert Lea MN | 18,217 | $65K | 12.8% | 5.7% | 54% | C |
| 1,569 | Ferguson MO | 17,953 | $48K | 24.2% | 5.9% | 3% | C |
| 1,570 | Shelby NC | 23,309 | $48K | 17.6% | 3.6% | 23% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 1,915 | 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 Albert Lea, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
Work in the towns next to Albert Lea
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Albert Lea workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albert Lea | – | C | B+ | 18 min | $64,603 |
| Albert Lea Township | under 1% | — | — | 15 min | — |
| Bancroft Township | under 1% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| Pickerel Lake Township | under 1% | — | — | 19 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Albert Lea Township, Bancroft Township and Pickerel Lake Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Albert Lea’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 Albert Lea: questions
What is the median household income in Albert Lea?
$64,603 (±$5,663) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Albert Lea?
12.8%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Albert Lea?
18 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Albert Lea work?
54% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Austin (6%, 19 mi), Rochester (5%, 51 mi), Owatonna (3%, 31 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Albert Lea walkable?
Albert Lea is more walkable than 75% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 7.8 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Albert Lea without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Albert Lea, from the people who make the trip.
More of Albert Lea
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.