Jobs, income and commuting in Howard, SD
About one in three work in Howard; the top destination outside it is Sioux Falls (15%, 51 miles). Commuters spend 22 minutes getting to work on average; the South Dakota average is 18, the U.S. 26. There are 567 jobs in Howard, against 328 working residents.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Howard
Howard’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Howard is Sioux Falls, 51 miles away as the crow flies. 15% of working residents (49) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Howard is where the jobs are
Howard has 567 jobs, 1.7 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Howard has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Howard went from 303 in 2013 to 567 in 2023, +87%. The jobs ↓
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 328 working residents, small shifts move the shares; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Near or far: the trip to work from Howard
About 28% 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.
The daily flow of workers through Howard
On a workday 217 residents head out to work, 111 work right here, and 456 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,100 people are in Howard on a workday afternoon, 29% more than live here.
1.7 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than 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.
Services make up most of the work in Howard
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Howard, 2013 → 2023: 303 → 567. 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 Howard’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting in to Howard: where workers come from
Where Howard clocks in
8% 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.
Time on the road from Howard: about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Howard workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 409 commuters (the 9% 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 Howard: questions
What is the median household income in Howard?
$60,313 (±$11,864) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Howard?
19.6%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Howard?
22 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 8% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Howard work?
34% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Sioux Falls (15%, 51 mi), Madison (8%, 21 mi), Mitchell (4%, 32 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Howard without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 8% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Howard, from the people who make the trip.
More of Howard
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.