Photo: Billybob2002 · CC BY 4.0Unemployment in Bottineau (1.7%) is lower than in 88% of U.S. towns
About two in five work in Bottineau; the top destination outside it is Minot (9%, 56 miles). For jobs and income Bottineau is better than 39% of U.S. towns (C+); for walkability it is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (A). Working residents average 16 minutes each way (North Dakota 18, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Bottineau stands out on work
Bottineau’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Bottineau is Minot, 56 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (77) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
A big share show a job far from home
34% 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 ↓
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 895 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
What’s behind Bottineau’s Jobs & income grade
Unemployment holds Bottineau’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 6% of U.S. towns).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Bottineau could be anywhere from C− to B.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Bottineau
About 34% 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.
Bottineau by day and by night
On a workday 521 residents head out to work, 374 work right here, and 734 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,400 people are in Bottineau on a workday afternoon, 10% more than live here.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.24 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 Bottineau to work: where people go
Where Bottineau clocks in
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.
What work there is in Bottineau: 1,108 jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bottineau, 2013 → 2023: 1,163 → 1,108. 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 Bottineau’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Bottineau: about 16 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bottineau workers work from home, vs 8% across North Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 970 commuters (the 6% who work from home are left out). Across North Dakota: 85% 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.
Walkable streets, thin transit: Bottineau
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,035 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). 3.0% of Bottineau households have no vehicle (North Dakota 5.9%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Bottineau’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Bottineau is 2,893rd of 5,404 U.S. towns of 1,500 to 2,900
| # | 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% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 389 | Gibbs Township ND | 2,856 | $156K | 1.4% | 2.9% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 765 | Harrison Township ND | 1,734 | $122K | 5.1% | 5.2% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,101 | Casselton ND | 2,485 | $73K | 7.1% | 0.9% | 19% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,891 | Stewartville AL | 1,629 | $88K | 11.0% | 6.2% | 2% | C+ |
| 2,892 | Leadville CO | 2,668 | $86K | 13.5% | 3.1% | 19% | C+ |
| 2,893 | Bottineau ND | 2,152 | $66K | 12.0% | 1.7% | 42% | C+ |
| 2,894 | Hawkins TX | 1,862 | $72K | 13.3% | 4.4% | 7% | C+ |
| 2,895 | Carlisle NY | 1,760 | $87K | 9.6% | 5.0% | 1% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 5,404 | Lame Deer MT | 1,872 | $24K | 55.8% | 42.2% | 60% | 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 Bottineau, the top three, the last and three more from North Dakota.
Bottineau and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Pickering Township (3%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bottineau workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottineau | – | C+ | A | 16 min | $65,905 |
| Whitteron Township | 2% | — | — | 15 min | — |
| Pickering Township | 3% | — | — | — | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Whitteron Township and Pickering Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Bottineau’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 Bottineau: questions
What is the median household income in Bottineau?
$65,905 (±$8,154) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $76,657 across North Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bottineau?
12.0%, against 10.8% across North Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bottineau?
16 minutes each way on average, against 18 across North Dakota and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bottineau work?
42% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Minot (9%, 56 mi), Bismarck (5%, 140 mi), Fargo (4%, 215 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Bottineau walkable?
Bottineau is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.0 out of 20, and 5% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bottineau without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bottineau, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bottineau
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.