For more than half of its working residents, Nelson is a commute to Alexandria
The average commute takes 25 minutes each way, where Minnesota has 23 and the U.S. 26. For 4% of workers, the job is at home, where Minnesota as a whole has 18%. Hardly any stay in Nelson for work; outside it, Alexandria is the main destination (52%, 5 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 73 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 75 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 (1.03 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.
Out of Nelson to work: where people go
Where Nelson clocks in
52% 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.
Nelson makes things: 33% of its jobs are in goods
75 jobs are based in Nelson.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Nelson, 2013 → 2023: 85 → 75. 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 Nelson’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Nelson’s commute takes about 25 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Nelson workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 92 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.
The commute from Nelson, by distance
About 18% 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.
The towns around Nelson
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Nelson workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelson | – | — | — | 25 min | $57,188 |
| Osakis Township | under 2% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Alexandria Township | under 2% | A− | C | 21 min | $93,864 |
Same-state neighbors only. Osakis Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Nelson’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 Nelson: questions
What is the median household income in Nelson?
$57,188 (±$6,936) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Nelson?
9.0%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Nelson?
25 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Nelson work?
0% work in town.
Can you get around Nelson 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 Nelson, from the people who make the trip.
More of Nelson
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.