Photo: Famartin · CC BY-SA 3.0At 13.2%, unemployment in Battle Mountain is higher than in 98% of U.S. towns
About one in three work in Battle Mountain; the top destination outside it is Elko (7%, 64 miles). The two grades for Battle Mountain are C− for jobs and income and A for walkability. Working from home is the commute for <1% of workers, against 12% across Nevada.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Battle Mountain apart
Fewer jobs are based in Battle Mountain than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Battle Mountain fell from 2,600 in 2013 to 1,561 in 2023, −40%. 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 ↓
Few Battle Mountain workers work from home
Only 0% of workers work from home, against 12% across Nevada. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
38% 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 ↓
Commutes from Battle Mountain are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 25 across Nevada. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical Nevada worker. Time on the road ↓
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.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Battle Mountain
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Battle Mountain is better than 20% of U.S. towns, #38 of 42 in Nevada. Household income holds Battle Mountain’s grade up ($81,857, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Battle Mountain could be anywhere from D− to B−.
Battle Mountain works in goods: 31% of its jobs
1,561 jobs are based in Battle Mountain.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Battle Mountain, 2013 → 2023: 2,600 → 1,561. 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 Battle Mountain’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 20 minutes each way, quicker than most of Nevada
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Battle Mountain workers work from home, vs 12% across Nevada. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,462 commuters (the <1% who work from home are left out). Across Nevada: 80% drive alone, 3% 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 Battle Mountain commutes
About 38% 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.
Who works in Battle Mountain, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 1,031 residents head out to work, 575 work right here, and 986 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 (0.97 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 Battle Mountain to work: where people go
Where Battle Mountain clocks in
7% of workers
4% of workers
3% 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.
Good to walk, short on transit: Battle Mountain
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Battle Mountain is more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns, #12 of 42 in Nevada. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 15.3% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 4.6% across Nevada, on an EPA index of 7.8.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,464 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). 4.2% of Battle Mountain households have no vehicle (Nevada 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 9% of Battle Mountain’s commuters take a bus or train.
Battle Mountain next to U.S. towns of 2,500 to 4,700: 3,426th of 4,221 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 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Mission Hills KS | 3,522 | $250K | 1.2% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,697 | Washoe Valley NV | 3,315 | $123K | 5.8% | 6.8% | 3% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,726 | Minden NV | 3,707 | $100K | 13.3% | 2.1% | 23% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 2,443 | Ely NV | 3,946 | $78K | 7.6% | 3.9% | 61% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 3,424 | Cleveland OK | 3,271 | $55K | 20.3% | 4.6% | 19% | C− |
| 3,425 | Portville NY | 3,359 | $66K | 10.4% | 7.6% | 12% | C− |
| 3,426 | Battle Mountain NV | 3,518 | $82K | 10.1% | 13.2% | 36% | C− |
| 3,427 | Marshville NC | 2,739 | $58K | 14.7% | 10.1% | 4% | C− |
| 3,428 | Mount Angel OR | 3,454 | $62K | 14.0% | 15.3% | 9% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,221 | 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 Battle Mountain, the top three, the last and three more from Nevada.
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 Battle Mountain: questions
What is the median household income in Battle Mountain?
$81,857 (±$28,990) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $78,260 across Nevada and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Battle Mountain?
10.1%, against 12.4% across Nevada and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Battle Mountain?
20 minutes each way on average, against 25 across Nevada and 26 nationally. <1% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Battle Mountain work?
36% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Elko (7%, 64 mi), Reno (4%, 170 mi), Sparks (3%, 163 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Battle Mountain walkable?
Battle Mountain is more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 7.8 out of 20, and 15% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Battle Mountain without a car?
9% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Battle Mountain, from the people who make the trip.
More of Battle Mountain
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.