Work means Mitchell for about two in five of Ethan’s working residents
18% of workers work from home, next to 10% for South Dakota as a whole. Only 2% work in Ethan; the top destination outside it is Mitchell (44%, 13 miles). Working residents average 28 minutes each way, next to 18 for South Dakota and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The workday shuffle in and out of Ethan
On a workday 184 residents head out to work, 4 work right here, and 128 people come in from elsewhere.
About 310 people are in Ethan on a workday afternoon, 15% fewer than live here.
0.70 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 2023, primary jobs.
Commuting out of Ethan: the destinations
Where Ethan 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.
Inside Ethan’s 132 jobs
132 jobs are based in Ethan.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Ethan, 2013 → 2023: 104 → 132. 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 Ethan’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Ethan: about 28 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Ethan workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 150 commuters (the 18% 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.
How many miles Ethan commutes
About 37% 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.
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 Ethan: questions
What is the median household income in Ethan?
$60,417 (±$11,419) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Ethan?
12.1%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Ethan?
28 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Ethan work?
2% work in town.
Can you get around Ethan without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Ethan, from the people who make the trip.
More of Ethan
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.