Photo: Myotus · CC BY 4.0Household incomes in Benson trail those of 84% of U.S. towns
The poverty rate is 9.8% (Minnesota 9.3%). For jobs and income Benson is better than 32% of U.S. towns (C); for walkability it is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (A). Working from home is the commute for 2% of workers, next to 18% for Minnesota as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Benson, in brief
Few Benson workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 18% across Minnesota. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Commutes from Benson 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.
The figures behind Benson’s Jobs & income grade
Unemployment holds Benson’s grade up (3.1%, U.S. 5.2%); household income pulls it down ($52,821, U.S. $80,734).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Benson could be anywhere from D to B.
About 18 minutes each way, quicker than most of Minnesota
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Benson workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,480 commuters (the 2% 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.
A workday in Benson: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 903 residents head out to work, 651 work right here, and 819 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 2023, primary jobs.
10% of working residents work in Torning Township
Where Benson clocks in
5% 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.
What work there is in Benson: 1,470 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Benson, 2013 → 2023: 1,455 → 1,470. 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 Benson’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Benson’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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Good to walk, short on transit: Benson
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,513 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). 9.5% of Benson households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Benson’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 4,402 U.S. towns of 2,400 to 4,600, Benson comes 3,019th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 7 | Independence MN | 3,763 | $187K | 1.1% | 0.8% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Deephaven MN | 3,794 | $198K | 1.7% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 18 | Greenfield MN | 2,962 | $154K | 1.2% | 0.4% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,017 | Wise VA | 2,853 | $54K | 12.5% | 3.1% | 25% | C |
| 3,018 | Hamilton IL | 2,624 | $57K | 14.2% | 2.9% | 12% | C |
| 3,019 | Benson MN | 3,444 | $53K | 9.8% | 3.1% | 42% | C |
| 3,020 | Bean Blossom Township IN | 2,887 | $83K | 11.4% | 7.2% | <1% | C |
| 3,021 | Warrensburg NY | 3,937 | $61K | 14.7% | 2.8% | 17% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 4,402 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Benson, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
Benson and its neighbors: 10% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Benson workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benson | – | C | A | 18 min | $52,821 |
| Torning Township | 10% | — | — | 12 min | — |
| Six Mile Grove Township | under 1% | — | — | 23 min | — |
| Benson Township | under 1% | — | — | 17 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Torning Township, Six Mile Grove Township and Benson Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Torning Township. Darker towns draw more of Benson’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 Benson: questions
What is the median household income in Benson?
$52,821 (±$9,160) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Benson?
9.8%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Benson?
18 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Benson work?
42% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Torning Township (10%, 4 mi), Morris (5%, 24 mi), Willmar (4%, 30 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Benson walkable?
Benson is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 8.9 out of 20, and 11% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Benson without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 10% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Benson, from the people who make the trip.
More of Benson
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.