Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Canton

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Canton streetsign-Prairie and MainPhoto: Myotus · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Canton

Most of Canton commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident

Only 2% stay in Canton for work; outside it, Harmony is the main destination (13%, 4 miles). 17 jobs are based in Canton; 112 of its residents have a job. The average commute takes 27 minutes each way; Minnesota averages 23, the U.S. 26.

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

Day and night

Canton by day and by night

On a workday 110 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 15 people come in from elsewhere.

110live here, work elsewhere
2live and work here
15work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night310
Workday220
310live here− 110head out to work+ 15come in to work= 220on a workday

About 220 people are in Canton on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.15jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

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 map

Where Canton’s working residents head each day

Cresco: 3 residents work here (3%)Decorah: 2 residents work here (2%)Mabel: 3 residents work here (3%)Fountain: 2 residents work here (2%)Spring Grove: 2 residents work here (2%)CantonHarmony: 15 residents work here (13%)Rushford: 3 residents work here (3%)Preston: 10 residents work here (9%)ChatfieldSpring Valley: 5 residents work here (4%)AustinChaskaRochester: 15 residents work here (13%)Greenleaf TownshipCarrolton TownshipBeaver TownshipBristol TownshipHarmonyRochesterPrestonSpring ValleyCrescoMabelCanton
1
Harmony4.2 mi away
13%15
2
Rochester43.2 mi away
13%15
3
Preston12.5 mi away
9%10
4
Spring Valley25.5 mi away
4%5
5
Cresco, IA14.4 mi away
3%3
6
Mabel8.1 mi away
3%3
7
Rushford21.5 mi away
3%3
8
Decorah, IA17.4 mi away
2%2
9
Fountain17.9 mi away
2%2
10
Spring Grove14.8 mi away
2%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
46%52
The top trips

Where Canton clocks in

Lines 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.

The jobs

Canton works in goods: 41% of its jobs

Jobs based in CantonJobs Canton residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms41%31%
Trade, transport & utilities41%25%
Services: health, schools, offices18%44%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less18%16%
$1,251–$3,333 a month29%21%
Over $3,333 a month53%63%

Who does it

29 or younger6%24%
30 to 5453%45%
55 and older41%31%
+0%

Jobs based in Canton, 2013 → 2023: 17 → 17. 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 Canton’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

A commute of about 27 minutes in Canton

A year of commuting
210 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Canton27 min
Minnesota23 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
12%

of Canton workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.

About 1 in 10
How Canton gets to work
89%Drive alone
5%Carpool
1%Transit
6%Other

Share of the 180 commuters (the 12% 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.

How far

Close to home or a long way: work trips from Canton

10 mi25 mi50 miHarmony: 13% · 4.2 miRochester: 13% · 43.2 miPreston: 9% · 12.5 miSpring Valley: 4% · 25.5 miCresco: 3% · 14.4 miMabel: 3% · 8.1 miRushford: 3% · 21.5 miDecorah: 2% · 17.4 miFountain: 2% · 17.9 miSpring Grove: 2% · 14.8 miHarmony 13%Rochester 13%Preston 9%Spring Valley 4%Cresco 3%Canton
CantonTop destinations (size = commuters)
21%Under 10 mi23 residents
34%10–24 mi36 residents
23%25–50 mi25 residents
21%Over 50 mi23 residents

About 21% 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.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Canton: questions

What is the median household income in Canton?

$53,056 (±$15,219) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Canton?

19.3%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Canton?

27 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Canton work?

2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Harmony (13%, 4 mi), Rochester (13%, 43 mi), Preston (9%, 12 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Canton without a car?

1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Canton, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Canton

Canton home →

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.