A job hub: Superior has 1.8 jobs per working resident, and 408 people come in to work
Home is the office for 4% of workers; Montana has 12%. 466 jobs are based in Superior; 253 of its residents have a job. About one in five stay in Superior for work; outside it, Missoula is the main destination (24%, 47 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Superior: the gist
Superior’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Superior is Missoula, 47 miles away as the crow flies. 24% of working residents (60) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Superior workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 36 minutes each way, against 19 across Montana. Over a year that’s about 276 hours of commuting, 130 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Many jobs in Superior pay little
27% of the jobs based in Superior pay $1,250 a month or less, under $15,000 a year. 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; with 253 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Miles to work from Superior
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 daily trip from Superior: about 36 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Superior workers work from home, vs 13% across Montana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 286 commuters (the 4% 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.
Jobs in Superior: what the 466 are
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Superior, 2013 → 2023: 563 → 466. 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 Superior’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Who commutes out of Superior, and who commutes in
On a workday 195 residents head out to work and 58 work right here.
About 1,100 people are in Superior on a workday afternoon, 23% more 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 the people who work in Superior live
Where Superior clocks in
24% of workers
6% of workers
6% 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 Superior compares with the towns next door
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Superior workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Superior | – | — | — | 36 min | $45,250 |
| Riverbend | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Riverbend: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Superior’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 Superior: questions
What is the median household income in Superior?
$45,250 (±$6,344) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,509 across Montana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Superior?
15.5%, against 11.5% across Montana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Superior?
36 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Montana and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Superior work?
23% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Missoula (24%, 47 mi), St. Regis (6%, 12 mi), Alberton (6%, 24 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Superior without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 7% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Superior, from the people who make the trip.
More of Superior
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.