John C. Nutting House · Photo: McGhiever · CC BY-SA 4.0Households in Northfield earn more than those in 62% of U.S. towns
About one in three stay in Northfield for work; outside it, Faribault is the main destination (5%, 12 miles). Below the poverty line: 8.8% of residents, against 9.3% across Minnesota. The two grades for Northfield are B for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Northfield: the gist
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Northfield
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Northfield is better than 59% of U.S. towns, #175 of 273 in Minnesota. Job access by car holds Northfield’s grade up (ahead of 65% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.9%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Northfield could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
Northfield’s commute takes about 18 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Northfield workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 8,631 commuters (the 16% 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 daily flow of workers through Northfield
On a workday 5,206 residents head out to work, 2,841 work right here, and 6,884 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 (1.21 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.
Commuting out of Northfield: the destinations
Where Northfield clocks in
5% of workers
5% of workers
3% 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.
67% of the jobs in Northfield pay over $3,333 a month
9,725 jobs are based in Northfield.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Northfield, 2013 → 2023: 8,943 → 9,725. 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 Northfield’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Half of Northfield commutes less than 14 miles
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.
In Northfield, walking beats the bus
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Northfield is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns, #13 of 273 in Minnesota. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 27.7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 5.7% across Minnesota, on an EPA index of 8.6.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 10,304 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 4.3% of Northfield households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Northfield’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Northfield ranks: 1,063rd of 1,847 U.S. towns of 15,000 to 30,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Wolf Trap VA | 15,858 | $250K | 3.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 8 | Prior Lake MN | 28,140 | $134K | 3.1% | 1.5% | 10% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 25 | Hugo MN | 17,167 | $116K | 2.8% | 1.6% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,061 | North Myrtle Beach SC | 21,346 | $73K | 7.4% | 4.0% | 26% | B |
| 1,062 | Westminster MD | 20,589 | $86K | 10.0% | 5.2% | 13% | B |
| 1,063 | Northfield MN | 21,992 | $85K | 8.8% | 4.9% | 35% | B |
| 1,064 | South San Jose Hills CA | 16,911 | $95K | 11.6% | 8.2% | 2% | B |
| 1,065 | Glenn Heights TX | 20,327 | $82K | 13.0% | 5.3% | 1% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,847 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | 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 Northfield, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
How Northfield compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Dundas (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Northfield workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northfield | – | B | A | 18 min | $84,895 |
| Bridgewater Township | under 2% | A | C− | 26 min | $121,000 |
| Northfield Township | under 2% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Greenvale Township | under 2% | — | — | 24 min | — |
| Waterford Township | under 2% | — | — | 25 min | — |
| Dundas | 2% | B+ | B+ | 24 min | $116,310 |
Same-state neighbors only. Northfield Township, Greenvale Township and Waterford Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Northfield’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 Northfield: questions
What is the median household income in Northfield?
$84,895 (±$8,327) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Northfield?
8.8%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Northfield?
18 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 16% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Northfield work?
35% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Faribault (5%, 12 mi), Minneapolis (5%, 35 mi), St. Paul (3%, 34 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Northfield walkable?
Northfield is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 8.6 out of 20, and 28% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Northfield without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Northfield, from the people who make the trip.
More of Northfield
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.