Photo: Tyler Vigen · CC BY-SA 4.0There are 2.0 jobs in Bloomington for every working resident, and 73,275 people commute in
Bloomington grades B+ for jobs and income and A for walkability. There are 81,351 jobs in Bloomington for 41,357 working residents. For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 6.8 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 26.2 in Minneapolis.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work in Bloomington: the figures worth knowing
Bloomington is where the jobs are
Bloomington has 81,351 jobs, 2.0 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 129,000 people are in town, 45% more than the 89,000 who live here. Day and night ↓
Bloomington and Minneapolis trade workers both ways
Minneapolis is the top workplace for Bloomington residents (17%) and also where the most people who work in Bloomington come from (10% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Most Bloomington residents work close to home
61% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home. Only 4% work more than 50 miles away. How far ↓
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.
Income, poverty and work: Bloomington’s grade explained
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Bloomington is better than 74% of U.S. towns, #138 of 273 in Minnesota. Job access by car holds Bloomington’s grade up (ahead of 97% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.8%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Bloomington could be anywhere from B to A−.
Bloomington by day and by night
On a workday 33,281 residents head out to work and 8,076 work right here.
About 129,000 people are in Bloomington on a workday afternoon, 45% more than live here.
2.0 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.
The towns that send workers to Bloomington
Where Bloomington clocks in
17% of workers
7% of workers
6% 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.
How far Bloomington’s workers travel
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.
69% of the jobs in Bloomington pay over $3,333 a month
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bloomington, 2013 → 2023: 88,910 → 81,351. 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 Bloomington’s own residents hold wherever they work.
A commute of about 21 minutes in Bloomington
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bloomington workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 36,439 commuters (the 22% 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.
Bloomington is easy on foot, hard by bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Bloomington is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns, #14 of 273 in Minnesota. Both inputs place Bloomington 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 46,916 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 74% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 23% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 6.8 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 89% 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). 6.7% of Bloomington households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of Bloomington’s commuters take a bus or train.
Out of 514 U.S. towns of 62,000 to 120,000, Bloomington comes 196th on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeville MN | 79,270 | $139K | 2.9% | 2.0% | 11% | A+ |
| 2 | Fulshear TX | 64,630 | $187K | 1.6% | 2.8% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Plymouth MN | 78,942 | $137K | 4.3% | 2.3% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Maple Grove MN | 73,893 | $133K | 4.0% | 3.5% | 13% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 194 | Lyons Township IL | 112,345 | $93K | 9.4% | 4.8% | 12% | B+ |
| 195 | Framingham MA | 73,021 | $107K | 10.4% | 4.8% | 16% | B+ |
| 196 | Bloomington MN | 89,034 | $93K | 9.2% | 4.8% | 20% | B+ |
| 197 | Norwalk CT | 94,508 | $108K | 9.1% | 5.2% | 22% | B+ |
| 198 | Niles Township IL | 109,978 | $97K | 8.9% | 5.4% | 14% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 514 | Albany GA | 66,907 | $47K | 27.5% | 11.2% | 51% | 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 Bloomington, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
Bloomington and its neighbors: 21% work next door
The biggest share goes to Edina (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bloomington workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomington | – | B+ | A | 21 min | $93,211 |
| Savage | under 3% | A− | B− | 25 min | $125,513 |
| Burnsville | 3% | B+ | A− | 23 min | $87,024 |
| Eagan | 3% | A | A− | 21 min | $108,690 |
| Edina | 7% | A | A− | 20 min | $128,767 |
| Eden Prairie | 6% | A | A− | 21 min | $130,489 |
| Richfield | 2% | B+ | A+ | 23 min | $85,132 |
| Mendota Heights | under 3% | A+ | B | 20 min | $132,768 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Bloomington’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 Bloomington: questions
What is the median household income in Bloomington?
$93,211 (±$3,400) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bloomington?
9.2%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bloomington?
21 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 22% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bloomington work?
20% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Minneapolis (17%, 10 mi), Edina (7%, 5 mi), Eden Prairie (6%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Bloomington walkable?
Bloomington is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 11.3 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bloomington without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. 23% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bloomington, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bloomington
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.