Jobs and the daily commute in Sparta Township
Commuters spend 14 minutes getting to work on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. Only 7% stay in Sparta Township for work; outside it, Montevideo is the main destination (33%, 2 miles). 451 jobs are based in Sparta Township for 353 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Sparta Township apart
Sparta Township and Montevideo trade workers both ways
Montevideo is the top workplace for Sparta Township residents (33%) and also where the most people who work in Sparta Township come from (32% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Sparta Township makes and builds things
55% of the jobs based in Sparta Township are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Sparta Township residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 28%. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Sparta Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 14 minutes, against 23 across Minnesota. That’s about 69 hours a year less on the road than the typical Minnesota worker. Time on the road ↓
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; with 353 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Commuting out of Sparta Township: the destinations
Where Sparta Township 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.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
A place that makes things: 55% of Sparta Township’s jobs are in goods
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sparta Township, 2013 → 2023: 377 → 451. 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 Sparta Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Sparta Township: about 14 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sparta Township workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 320 commuters (the 14% 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.
Sparta Township by day and by night
On a workday 328 residents head out to work, 25 work right here, and 426 people come in from elsewhere.
About 830 people are in Sparta Township on a workday afternoon, 13% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.28 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.
How far it is to work from Sparta 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 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The towns next door employ 35% of Sparta Township
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sparta Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta Township | – | — | — | 14 min | $101,250 |
| Camp Release Township | under 2% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Stony Run Township | under 2% | — | — | 18 min | — |
| Montevideo | 33% | C | B− | 15 min | $68,596 |
| Tunsberg Township | under 2% | — | — | 15 min | — |
| Granite Falls Township | under 2% | — | — | 12 min | — |
| Rosewood Township | under 2% | — | — | 19 min | — |
| Leenthrop Township | 2% | — | — | 14 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Camp Release Township, Stony Run Township, Tunsberg Township, Granite Falls Township, Rosewood Township and Leenthrop Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Montevideo. Darker towns draw more of Sparta 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 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 Sparta Township: questions
What is the median household income in Sparta Township?
$101,250 (±$26,824) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sparta Township?
4.7%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sparta Township?
14 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sparta Township work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Montevideo (33%, 2 mi), Granite Falls (11%, 12 mi), Willmar (5%, 33 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Sparta 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 Sparta Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sparta Township
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.