Spencer Township has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.4 for each
Only 2% work in Spencer Township; the top destination outside it is Aitkin (28%, 4 miles). Employers in Spencer Township report 97 jobs, against 242 working residents. For 8% of workers, the job is at home, where Minnesota as a whole has 18%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Spencer Township, in brief
A lot of Spencer Township works one town over
33% of working residents work in a town that borders Spencer Township: Aitkin (28%) and Aitkin Township (5%). Next door ↓
A big share show a job far from home
33% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Commutes from Spencer Township are quick
The average trip to work takes 17 minutes, against 23 across Minnesota. That’s about 46 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 242 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The commute from Spencer Township, by distance
About 33% 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.
About 17 minutes to work from Spencer Township
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Spencer Township workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 225 commuters (the 8% 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.
Spencer Township quiets down on a workday
On a workday 237 residents head out to work, 5 work right here, and 92 people come in from elsewhere.
About 410 people are in Spencer Township on a workday afternoon, 26% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Where Spencer Township goes to work
Where Spencer Township clocks in
28% of workers
5% of workers
4% 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.
Factories, building and farms: 56% of the jobs in Spencer Township
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Spencer Township, 2013 → 2023: 74 → 97. 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 Spencer Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Work next door: 33% of Spencer Township’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Spencer Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spencer Township | – | — | — | 17 min | $81,375 |
| Aitkin | 28% | D− | A− | 14 min | $47,978 |
| Kimberly Township | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Morrison Township | under 2% | — | — | 32 min | — |
| Aitkin Township | 5% | — | — | 15 min | — |
| Nordland Township | under 2% | C+ | D | 23 min | $76,125 |
Same-state neighbors only. Kimberly Township, Morrison Township and Aitkin Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Aitkin. Darker towns draw more of Spencer 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 Spencer Township: questions
What is the median household income in Spencer Township?
$81,375 (±$9,736) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Spencer Township?
7.7%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Spencer Township?
17 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Spencer Township work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Aitkin (28%, 4 mi), Aitkin Township (5%, 6 mi), Brainerd (4%, 30 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Spencer 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 Spencer Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Spencer 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.