With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of Alexandria works elsewhere
Employers in Alexandria report 136 jobs, against 270 working residents. Only 7% stay in Alexandria for work; outside it, Mitchell is the main destination (31%, 14 miles). Working residents average 19 minutes each way (South Dakota 18, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Alexandria
31% of Alexandria works in Mitchell
83 working residents, 31%, have their main job in Mitchell, 14 miles away. That’s 4 times as many as work in Alexandria itself. The commute map ↓
A big share show a job far from home
32% 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 270 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Commuting out of Alexandria: the destinations
Where Alexandria clocks in
Lines 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 commute from Alexandria, by distance
About 32% 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.
How a workday changes Alexandria
On a workday 251 residents head out to work, 19 work right here, and 117 people come in from elsewhere.
About 520 people are in Alexandria on a workday afternoon, 20% fewer 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.
Mostly health care, schools and offices in Alexandria
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Alexandria, 2013 → 2023: 150 → 136. 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 Alexandria’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The daily trip from Alexandria: about 19 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Alexandria workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 404 commuters (the 7% who work from home are left out). Across South 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.
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 Alexandria: questions
What is the median household income in Alexandria?
$102,679 (±$22,301) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Alexandria?
3.3%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Alexandria?
19 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Alexandria work?
7% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Mitchell (31%, 14 mi), Sioux Falls (13%, 53 mi), Emery (5%, 9 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Alexandria 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 Alexandria, from the people who make the trip.
More of Alexandria
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.