Photo: Myotus · CC BY 4.0Almost no one in Watertown’s labor force is looking for work
Only 6% work in Watertown itself; outside it, Minneapolis draws the most (7%, 28 miles). Jobs and income earn Watertown A; getting around on foot earns it B+. Measured by household income, Watertown is ahead of 77% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Watertown
No single place dominates Watertown’s commute
The biggest draw, Minneapolis, gets only 7% of working residents, and 53% work outside the top ten towns entirely. Watertown residents fan out across the region. The commute map ↓
The better-paid jobs are outside Watertown
66% of Watertown residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, but only 42% of the jobs based in Watertown pay that much. Most residents work elsewhere: 94% leave town for their job. The jobs ↓
Many jobs in Watertown pay little
28% of the jobs based in Watertown pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. Young workers hold many of them: 32% of all the jobs here go to people 29 or younger. 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.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Watertown
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Watertown is better than 91% of U.S. towns, #64 of 273 in Minnesota. Unemployment is its strongest input (hardly any, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (7.7%, U.S. 12.5%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Watertown could be anywhere from A− to A+.
Commuting out of Watertown: the destinations
Where Watertown clocks in
7% 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.
Watertown works in goods: 33% of its jobs
528 jobs are based in Watertown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Watertown, 2013 → 2023: 462 → 528. 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 Watertown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily commute in and out of Watertown
On a workday 2,220 residents head out to work, 140 work right here, and 388 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,000 people are in Watertown on a workday afternoon, 38% fewer than live here.
0.22 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.
Watertown’s commute takes about 26 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Watertown workers work from home, vs 18% across Minnesota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,270 commuters (the 18% 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 Watertown’s workers travel
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.
Driving is how Watertown gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Watertown is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns, #142 of 273 in Minnesota. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 4.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 5.7% across Minnesota, on an EPA index of 6.9.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,781 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 under 0.1 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). 3.2% of Watertown households have no vehicle (Minnesota 6.7%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Watertown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Watertown next to U.S. towns of 3,400 to 6,500: 370th of 3,753 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 9 | Independence MN | 3,763 | $187K | 1.1% | 0.8% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 17 | Deephaven MN | 3,794 | $198K | 1.7% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 18 | Elko New Market MN | 5,300 | $152K | 1.1% | 0.0% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 368 | San Miguel CA | 3,967 | $250K | 1.8% | 5.7% | 1% | A |
| 369 | Layhill MD | 5,497 | $146K | 4.3% | 4.7% | 2% | A |
| 370 | Watertown MN | 4,789 | $100K | 7.7% | 0.0% | 6% | A |
| 371 | Millersburg OR | 3,583 | $125K | 5.1% | 1.5% | 3% | A |
| 372 | Castle Hills TX | 3,948 | $95K | 6.9% | 2.4% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 3,753 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Watertown, the top three, the last and three more from Minnesota.
Around Watertown: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Watertown Township (4%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Watertown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watertown | – | A | B+ | 26 min | $99,671 |
| Watertown Township | 4% | A+ | C | 28 min | $107,500 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Watertown’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 Watertown: questions
What is the median household income in Watertown?
$99,671 (±$9,686) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $89,062 across Minnesota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Watertown?
7.7%, against 9.3% across Minnesota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Watertown?
26 minutes each way on average, against 23 across Minnesota and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Watertown work?
6% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Minneapolis (7%, 28 mi), Waconia (6%, 9 mi), Plymouth (5%, 19 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Watertown walkable?
Watertown is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 6.9 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Watertown without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Watertown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Watertown
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.