Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Florence

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded–Not graded
Jobs & commute in Florence

Watertown draws more than half of Florence’s working residents

Only 2% stay in Florence for work; outside it, Watertown is the main destination (52%, 13 miles). A typical one-way commute lasts 25 minutes (South Dakota 18, U.S. 26). Florence has 58 jobs for 176 working residents.

Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made

58 jobs based here
Household income
$76K
median · South Dakota $75K
Poverty
9.8%
South Dakota 11.9%
Unemployment
0.0%
South Dakota 2.9% · U.S. 5.2%
Time each way
25 min
South Dakota 18 · U.S. 26
Work in town
2%
3 of 176 working residents
Work from home
4%
South Dakota 10% · U.S. 15%
Day and night

Florence on a workday afternoon

On a workday 173 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 55 people come in from elsewhere.

173live here, work elsewhere
3live and work here
55work here, live elsewhere
Night and day
At night340
Workday220
340live here− 170head out to work+ 55come in to work= 220on a workday

About 220 people are in Florence on a workday afternoon, 35% fewer than live here.

Job hub or commuter town?
0.33jobs per workerCommuter townJob hub

0.33 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.

The commute map

Where Florence goes to work

Wallace: 2 residents work here (1%)Bryant: 2 residents work here (1%)FlorenceCastlewoodClarkHenry: 4 residents work here (2%)Pierre: 3 residents work here (2%)Watertown: 92 residents work here (52%)Aberdeen: 4 residents work here (2%)Sioux Falls: 16 residents work here (9%)Pelican TownshipRauville Township: 5 residents work here (3%)Dexter TownshipKampeska Township: 3 residents work here (2%)Fuller TownshipWatertownSioux FallsRauville TownshipHenryAberdeenPierreFlorence
1
Watertown13.1 mi away
52%92
2
Sioux Falls108.7 mi away
9%16
3
Rauville Township11.5 mi away
3%5
4
Henry13.7 mi away
2%4
5
Aberdeen62.3 mi away
2%4
6
Florence (in town)right here
2%3
7
Pierre154.3 mi away
2%3
8
Kampeska Township14.8 mi away
2%3
9
Wallace7.7 mi away
1%2
10
Bryant32.9 mi away
1%2
Everywhere elseother towns and states
24%42
The top trips

Where Florence clocks in

52% of workers
13.1 mi awayWatertown92 Florence residents work here · Jobs & commute →
9%Sioux Falls
9% of workers
108.7 mi awaySioux Falls16 Florence residents work here · Jobs & commute →
3%Rauville Township
3% of workers
11.5 mi awayRauville Township5 Florence residents work here · Jobs & commute →

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 jobs

Florence is a services town

Jobs based in FlorenceJobs Florence residents hold

What kind of work

Goods: factories, building, farms3%31%
Trade, transport & utilities0%33%
Services: health, schools, offices97%36%

What it pays

$1,250 a month or less21%18%
$1,251–$3,333 a month33%24%
Over $3,333 a month47%59%

Who does it

29 or younger10%26%
30 to 5460%49%
55 and older29%24%
+12%

Jobs based in Florence, 2013 → 2023: 52 → 58. 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 Florence’s own residents hold wherever they work.

Time on the road

How long Florence spends getting to work: about 25 minutes

A year of commuting
192 hours

Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8 full days in the car, bus or train.

Average commute minutes, one way

Florence25 min
South Dakota18 min
U.S.26 min
Working from home
4%

of Florence workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.

About 0 in 10
How Florence gets to work
95%Drive alone
5%Carpool

Share of the 145 commuters (the 4% 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 far

How many miles Florence commutes

10 mi25 mi50 mi80 miWatertown: 52% · 13.1 miSioux Falls: 9% · 108.7 miRauville Township: 3% · 11.5 miHenry: 2% · 13.7 miAberdeen: 2% · 62.3 miPierre: 2% · 154.3 miKampeska Township: 2% · 14.8 miWallace: 1% · 7.7 miBryant: 1% · 32.9 miWatertown 52%Sioux Falls 9%Rauville Township 3%Henry 2%Aberdeen 2%Florence
FlorenceTop destinations (size = commuters)
6%Under 10 mi11 residents
63%10–24 mi111 residents
7%25–50 mi12 residents
23%Over 50 mi41 residents

About 23% 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.

Next door

Next door to Florence

Fuller Township: few work hereFuller TownshipFlorence
10%+5–9%2–4%1%Under 1%
Fuller Townshipunder 2% of Florence

Jobs & commute next door

TownFlorence workers thereJobs & incomeWalkabilityCommuteHousehold income
Florence–——25 min$75,909
Fuller Townshipunder 2%——27 min—

Same-state neighbors only. Fuller Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.

Darker towns draw more of Florence’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.

How to read these numbers

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.

How these figures and grades are made →

Jobs and commuting in Florence: questions

What is the median household income in Florence?

$75,909 (±$8,552) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.

What is the poverty rate in Florence?

9.8%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).

How long is the commute from Florence?

25 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.

Where do people who live in Florence work?

2% work in town.

Can you get around Florence without a car?

0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.

Commuter talk

Getting to work from Florence, from the people who make the trip.

Town Square →
Ask neighbors
Beyond the commute

More of Florence

Florence home →
$487Ktypical home
HousingLive where you work?Home values, rent & the market in Florence
25min commute
HandbookGetting around FlorenceRoads, buses, parking and the basics
shortest commutes
RankingsTop towns in SDShortest commutes, work from home & more

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.