Comertown Historic District · Photo: Jon Roanhaus · CC BY-SA 4.0Work and commuting in Westby
For 0% of workers, the job is at home, against 12% across Montana. About one in ten work in Westby; the top destination outside it is Plentywood (18%, 24 miles). The trip to work takes 15 minutes on average, against 19 across Montana and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who works in Westby, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 36 residents head out to work, 4 work right here, and 55 people come in from elsewhere.
About 180 people are in Westby on a workday afternoon, 12% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.48 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.
Out of Westby to work: where people go
Where Westby clocks in
18% 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.
The 59 jobs based in Westby
59 jobs are based in Westby.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Westby, 2013 → 2023: 41 → 59. 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 Westby’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 15 minutes to work from Westby
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Westby workers work from home, vs 13% across Montana. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 136 commuters (the 0% 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.
How many miles Westby commutes
About 64% 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 around Westby
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Westby workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westby | – | — | — | 15 min | $32,500 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Westby’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 Westby: questions
What is the median household income in Westby?
$32,500 (±$22,154) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,509 across Montana and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Westby?
8.3%, against 11.5% across Montana and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Westby?
15 minutes each way on average, against 19 across Montana and 26 nationally. 0% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Westby work?
10% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Plentywood (18%, 24 mi), Trenton (8%, 56 mi), Kalispell (5%, 472 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Westby without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Westby, from the people who make the trip.
More of Westby
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.