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Jobs & commute in Searles

Searles has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out

Hardly any work in Searles; the top destination outside it is New Ulm (30%, 6 miles). Searles has 5 jobs; 74 of its residents have a job. 2% of workers work from home (Minnesota 18%).

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

Day and night

The daily commute in and out of Searles

On a workday 74 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 5 people come in from elsewhere.

74live here, work elsewhere
0live and work here
5work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night200
Workday130
200live here− 74head out to work+ 5come in to work= 130on a workday

About 130 people are in Searles on a workday afternoon, 34% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.07jobs 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

Where the trip to work from Searles ends

Lafayette: 2 residents work here (3%)Madelia: 2 residents work here (3%)Springfield: 5 residents work here (7%)Sleepy Eye: 3 residents work here (4%)GaylordHutchinson: 2 residents work here (3%)New Ulm: 22 residents work here (30%)Sioux Falls: 2 residents work here (3%)Milford Township: 2 residents work here (3%)Rosendale Township: 2 residents work here (3%)Stark TownshipEden TownshipHome Township: 2 residents work here (3%)SearlesNew UlmSpringfieldSleepy EyeLafayetteMadeliaHutchinsonSearles
1
New Ulm5.8 mi away
30%22
2
Springfield27 mi away
7%5
3
Sleepy Eye15 mi away
4%3
4
Lafayette15.1 mi away
3%2
5
Madelia12.6 mi away
3%2
6
Hutchinson45.3 mi away
3%2
7
Sioux Falls, SD123.9 mi away
3%2
8
Milford Township9.4 mi away
3%2
9
Rosendale Township18.4 mi away
3%2
10
Home Township15.1 mi away
3%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
41%30
The top trips

Where Searles 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

A place that makes things: 100% of Searles’ jobs are in goods

Jobs based in SearlesJobs Searles residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms100%20%
Trade, transport & utilities0%24%
Services: health, schools, offices0%55%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less0%15%
$1,251–$3,333 a month20%22%
Over $3,333 a month80%64%

Who does it

29 or younger20%16%
30 to 5460%57%
55 and older20%27%
−38%

Jobs based in Searles, 2013 → 2023: 8 → 5. 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 Searles’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

A commute of about 20 minutes in Searles

A year of commuting
150 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.3 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Searles20 min
Minnesota23 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
2%

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

About 0 in 10
How Searles gets to work
72%Drive alone
23%Carpool
5%Other

Share of the 107 commuters (the 2% 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

The commute from Searles, by distance

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miNew Ulm: 30% · 5.8 miSpringfield: 7% · 27 miSleepy Eye: 4% · 15 miLafayette: 3% · 15.1 miMadelia: 3% · 12.6 miHutchinson: 3% · 45.3 miSioux Falls: 3% · 123.9 miMilford Township: 3% · 9.4 miRosendale Township: 3% · 18.4 miHome Township: 3% · 15.1 miNew Ulm 30%Springfield 7%Sleepy Eye 4%Lafayette 3%Madelia 3%Searles
SearlesTop destinations (size = commuters)
32%Under 10 mi24 residents
24%10–24 mi18 residents
15%25–50 mi11 residents
28%Over 50 mi21 residents

About 28% 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 Searles: questions

What is the median household income in Searles?

$80,625 (±$26,983) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Searles?

1.0%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Searles?

20 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Searles work?

0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are New Ulm (30%, 6 mi), Springfield (7%, 27 mi), Sleepy Eye (4%, 15 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).

Can you get around Searles without a car?

0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

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

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Searles

Searles 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.