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Darwin Water Tower, Darwin Minnesota Tony Webster (29760334840)Photo: Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota · CC BY-SA 2.0
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Darwin

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

There are 33 jobs in Darwin, against 187 working residents. Hardly any work in Darwin; the top destination outside it is Litchfield (20%, 5 miles). 4% of workers have no commute at all (Minnesota 18%).

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

Day and night

Who commutes out of Darwin, and who commutes in

On a workday 187 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 33 people come in from elsewhere.

187live here, work elsewhere
0live and work here
33work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night330
Workday180
330live here− 190head out to work+ 33come in to work= 180on a workday

About 180 people are in Darwin on a workday afternoon, 46% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.18jobs 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

The towns that employ Darwin’s residents

Hanley FallsRoscoeWatkins: 9 residents work here (5%)Wood LakeKimballCokato: 7 residents work here (4%)Dassel: 6 residents work here (3%)DarwinCold Spring: 4 residents work here (2%)Litchfield: 37 residents work here (20%)Hutchinson: 9 residents work here (5%)Waite Park: 4 residents work here (2%)St. Cloud: 13 residents work here (7%)Minneapolis: 4 residents work here (2%)Ellsworth TownshipForest City TownshipLitchfield Township: 7 residents work here (4%)Paynesville TownshipMaine Prairie TownshipLitchfieldSt. CloudWatkinsHutchinsonCokatoLitchfield TownshipDarwin
1
Litchfield5.3 mi away
20%37
2
St. Cloud32 mi away
7%13
3
Watkins15 mi away
5%9
4
Hutchinson14.9 mi away
5%9
5
Cokato11.6 mi away
4%7
64%7
7
Dassel5.2 mi away
3%6
8
Cold Spring24.9 mi away
2%4
9
Waite Park30.5 mi away
2%4
10
Minneapolis57.1 mi away
2%4
Everywhere elseother towns and states
47%87
The top trips

Where Darwin 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

67% of the jobs in Darwin pay over $3,333 a month

Jobs based in DarwinJobs Darwin residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms24%31%
Trade, transport & utilities3%20%
Services: health, schools, offices73%49%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less15%15%
$1,251–$3,333 a month18%23%
Over $3,333 a month67%62%

Who does it

29 or younger9%32%
30 to 5445%39%
55 and older45%29%
−30%

Jobs based in Darwin, 2013 → 2023: 47 → 33. 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 Darwin’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

Each way, about 22 minutes from Darwin

A year of commuting
169 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Darwin22 min
Minnesota23 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
4%

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

About 0 in 10
How Darwin gets to work
82%Drive alone
8%Carpool
4%Transit
3%Walk
3%Other

Share of the 158 commuters (the 4% 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

Darwin’s commute, mile by mile

10 mi25 mi50 mi65 miLitchfield: 20% · 5.3 miSt. Cloud: 7% · 32 miWatkins: 5% · 15 miHutchinson: 5% · 14.9 miCokato: 4% · 11.6 miLitchfield Township: 4% · 8.1 miDassel: 3% · 5.2 miCold Spring: 2% · 24.9 miWaite Park: 2% · 30.5 miMinneapolis: 2% · 57.1 miLitchfield 20%St. Cloud 7%Watkins 5%Hutchinson 5%Cokato 4%Darwin
DarwinTop destinations (size = commuters)
29%Under 10 mi54 residents
27%10–24 mi51 residents
25%25–50 mi47 residents
19%Over 50 mi35 residents

About 19% 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 Darwin: questions

What is the median household income in Darwin?

$70,000 (±$23,450) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Darwin?

10.5%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Darwin?

22 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Darwin work?

0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Litchfield (20%, 5 mi), St. Cloud (7%, 32 mi), Watkins (5%, 15 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Darwin without a car?

4% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

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

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Darwin

Darwin 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.