Photo: 123dieinafire · Public domainOak Grove has 0.2 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Jobs & income A: better than 95% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #47 of 273 in Minnesota.
Walkability D: more walkable than 7% of U.S. towns · #271 of 273 in Minnesota.
Household incomes here are higher than in 87% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 37 minutes each way (Minnesota 23, U.S. 26). Only 3% work in Oak Grove; the top destination outside it is Minneapolis (11%, 27 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Oak Grove, in brief
Oak Grove workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 37 minutes each way, against 23 across Minnesota. Over a year that’s about 284 hours of commuting, 107 more than the state’s typical worker. Every town next door averages less (25 to 32 minutes). Time on the road ↓
Oak Grove is a place people come home to
There are 710 jobs based in Oak Grove, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Oak Grove has about 5,700 people in it, 40% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Oak Grove
71% of Oak Grove residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 48% of the jobs based in Oak Grove pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 97% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Oak Grove’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Oak Grove is Minneapolis, 27 miles away as the crow flies. 11% of working residents (491) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Young people hold many of the jobs here
35% of the jobs based in Oak Grove are held by workers 29 or younger, against 21% of Oak Grove’s own working residents. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Oak Grove’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Oak Grove is better than 95% of U.S. towns, #47 of 273 in Minnesota. The poverty rate is its strongest input (1.7%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Oak Grove could be anywhere from A to A+.
About 37 minutes each way, longer than most of Minnesota
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Oak Grove workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,126 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.
Oak Grove quiets down on a workday
On a workday 4,316 residents head out to work, 147 work right here, and 563 people come in from elsewhere.
About 5,700 people are in Oak Grove on a workday afternoon, 40% fewer than live here.
0.16 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Oak Grove makes things: 31% of its jobs are in goods
710 jobs are based in Oak Grove. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Oak Grove’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Oak Grove, 2013 → 2023: 607 → 710. 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.
Half of Oak Grove commutes less than 19 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
11% of working residents work in Minneapolis
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Oak Grove clocks in
11% of workers
5% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
Most trips from Oak Grove start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Oak Grove is more walkable than 7% of U.S. towns, #271 of 273 in Minnesota. Both inputs place Oak Grove near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,745 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 1.6% of Oak Grove households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Oak Grove’s commuters take a bus or train.
Oak Grove is 241st of 2,831 U.S. towns of 6,600 to 12,800 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Oak Grove, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 12 | Albertville MN | 8,544 | $133K | 1.1% | 0.2% | 5% | A+ |
| 13 | Mendota Heights MN | 11,475 | $133K | 2.8% | 1.4% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 30 | Victoria MN | 12,447 | $196K | 2.1% | 1.8% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 239 | East Earl Township PA | 6,785 | $102K | 3.6% | 1.5% | 15% | A |
| 240 | Indiana Township PA | 7,420 | $115K | 4.7% | 2.4% | 6% | A |
| 241 | Oak Grove MN | 9,476 | $118K | 1.7% | 3.0% | 3% | A |
| 242 | Brentwood MO | 8,079 | $100K | 5.1% | 2.4% | 4% | A |
| 243 | Shiloh Valley Township IL | 12,737 | $105K | 4.8% | 1.5% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,831 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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.
Oak Grove and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to St. Francis (3%). Darker towns draw more of Oak Grove’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Oak Grove workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oak Grove | – | A | D | 37 min | $117,696 |
| St. Francis | 3% | A | C | 32 min | $111,198 |
| East Bethel | under 3% | A | C− | 32 min | $110,000 |
| Nowthen | under 3% | A | B | 27 min | $160,417 |
| Andover | under 3% | A+ | C | 25 min | $137,593 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
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 Oak Grove: questions
What is the median household income in Oak Grove?
$117,696 (±$9,639) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Oak Grove?
1.7%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Oak Grove?
37 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Oak Grove work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Minneapolis (11%, 27 mi), Coon Rapids (6%, 12 mi), Anoka (5%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Oak Grove walkable?
Oak Grove is more walkable than 7% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 5.0 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Oak Grove without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Oak Grove, from the people who make the trip.
More of Oak Grove
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.