Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0Heron Lake Township has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.3 for each
Heron Lake Township has 50 jobs, against 143 working residents. Hardly any work in Heron Lake Township; the top destination outside it is Jackson (31%, 11 miles). The trip to work takes 18 minutes on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
How many people are in Heron Lake Township by day
On a workday 143 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 50 people come in from elsewhere.
About 210 people are in Heron Lake Township on a workday afternoon, 30% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Where people from Heron Lake Township work
Where Heron Lake Township clocks in
31% of workers
10% 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.
30% of the jobs in Heron Lake Township make or build things
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Heron Lake Township, 2014 → 2024: 44 → 50. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Heron Lake Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Heron Lake Township: about 18 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Heron Lake Township workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 171 commuters (the 13% 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 it is to work from Heron Lake Township
About 22% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The towns around Heron Lake Township
The biggest share goes to Lakefield (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Heron Lake Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heron Lake Township | – | — | — | 18 min | $94,107 |
| West Heron Lake Township | under 2% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| Lakefield | 7% | C | B | 18 min | $71,648 |
| Belmont Township | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Weimer Township | under 2% | — | — | 18 min | — |
| Delafield Township | under 2% | — | — | 16 min | — |
| Hunter Township | under 2% | — | — | 17 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. West Heron Lake Township, Belmont Township, Weimer Township, Delafield Township and Hunter Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Heron Lake Township’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 2024, 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 Heron Lake Township: questions
What is the median household income in Heron Lake Township?
$94,107 (±$28,285) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Heron Lake Township?
12.2%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Heron Lake Township?
18 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Heron Lake Township work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Jackson (31%, 11 mi), Windom (10%, 10 mi), Lakefield (7%, 3 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Heron Lake Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Heron Lake Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Heron Lake Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.