Work means Helena for more than half of East Helena’s working residents
Only 5% work in East Helena itself; outside it, Helena draws the most (56%, 5 miles). The two grades for East Helena are C− for jobs and income and B+ for walkability. Household incomes here are lower than in 73% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
East Helena at work: what stands out
East Helena trades workers with the towns around it
East Helena has about as many jobs (1,112) as working residents (1,041), but they are mostly different people: 994 residents leave for work each day while 1,065 people come in. Only 4% of the jobs in East Helena are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Most East Helena residents work close to home
74% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about three in four. How far ↓
Fewer jobs are based in East Helena than ten years ago
Jobs counted in East Helena fell from 1,571 in 2014 to 1,112 in 2024, −29%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Nearly all the work in East Helena is services
88% of the jobs based here are in services, such as health care, schools and offices. Only 4% are in factories, building or farms. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
How East Helena earns its Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, East Helena is better than 16% of U.S. towns. Job access by car holds East Helena’s grade up (ahead of 41% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (7.9%, U.S. 5.2%).
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, East Helena could be anywhere from D− to A−.
The daily flow of workers through East Helena
On a workday 994 residents head out to work, 47 work right here, and 1,065 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.07 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The commute from East Helena, by distance
About 21% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
1,112 jobs are based in East Helena.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in East Helena, 2014 → 2024: 1,571 → 1,112. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs East Helena’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting out of East Helena: the destinations
Where East Helena clocks in
56% 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.
How long East Helena spends getting to work: about 17 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of East Helena workers work from home, vs 13% across Montana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 874 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Montana: 81% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Most trips from East Helena start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, East Helena is more walkable than 69% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place East Helena 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 988 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 6.2% of East Helena households have no vehicle (Montana 4.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of East Helena’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, East Helena is 4,191st of 5,328 U.S. towns of 1,600 to 3,100
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 549 | King Arthur Park MT | 1,992 | $109K | 7.4% | 0.0% | 1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 647 | Manhattan MT | 2,073 | $88K | 2.9% | 0.0% | 8% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 897 | Big Sky MT | 2,445 | $139K | 4.7% | 1.4% | 66% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,189 | Sandusky MI | 2,664 | $57K | 16.1% | 5.0% | 33% | C− |
| 4,190 | St. Charles MI | 1,941 | $50K | 15.3% | 5.7% | 9% | C− |
| 4,191 | East Helena MT | 2,325 | $60K | 16.5% | 7.9% | 5% | C− |
| 4,192 | Tool TX | 2,427 | $71K | 17.3% | 7.1% | 2% | C− |
| 4,193 | Newfield ME | 1,693 | $57K | 10.5% | 3.3% | 3% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 5,328 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 61% | 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 East Helena, the top three, the last and three more from Montana.
Bordering towns draw 59% of East Helena’s workers
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | East Helena workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Helena | – | C− | B+ | 17 min | $60,417 |
| Helena Valley Southeast | 3% | C+ | C+ | 20 min | $74,075 |
| Helena | 56% | B | A | 14 min | $71,036 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Helena. Darker towns draw more of East Helena’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 2024, 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 East Helena: questions
What is the median household income in East Helena?
$60,417 (±$22,421) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,509 across Montana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in East Helena?
16.5%, against 11.5% across Montana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from East Helena?
17 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Montana and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in East Helena work?
5% work in town.
Is East Helena walkable?
East Helena is more walkable than 69% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 8.3 out of 20, and 3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around East Helena without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from East Helena, from the people who make the trip.
More of East Helena
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.