Where Cottonwood earns its living
At home: 0% of workers have no commute at all (South Dakota 10%). Hardly any work in Cottonwood; the top destination outside it is Philip (33%, 13 miles). No jobs are based in Cottonwood in the Census job records; 6 of its residents work elsewhere.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The daily commute in and out of Cottonwood
On a workday 6 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 0 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3 people are in Cottonwood on a workday afternoon, 67% fewer than live here.
0.00 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Cottonwood: the destinations
Where Cottonwood clocks in
33% of workers
17% 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.
Working from home in Cottonwood
of Cottonwood workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 9 commuters (the 0% 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.
Cottonwood’s commute, mile by mile
About 17% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2024, 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 Cottonwood: questions
What is the poverty rate in Cottonwood?
1.5%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
Where do people who live in Cottonwood work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Philip (33%, 13 mi), Kadoka (33%, 22 mi), Rapid City (17%, 66 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Cottonwood without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Cottonwood, from the people who make the trip.
More of Cottonwood
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.