Making a living in Mellette
Only 3% work in Mellette itself; outside it, Redfield draws the most (21%, 19 miles). The average commute takes 19 minutes each way, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 96 jobs are based in Mellette; 62 of its residents have a job.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Who commutes out of Mellette, and who commutes in
On a workday 60 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 94 people come in from elsewhere.
About 230 people are in Mellette on a workday afternoon, 18% more than live here.
1.5 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.
Where the people who work in Mellette live
Where Mellette 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 kinds of work in Mellette
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Mellette, 2013 → 2023: 76 → 96. 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 Mellette’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 19 minutes from Mellette
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.2 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Mellette workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 87 commuters (the 13% 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.
Half of Mellette commutes less than 21 miles
About 35% 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 Mellette: questions
What is the median household income in Mellette?
$106,964 (±$12,552) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Mellette?
10.1%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Mellette?
19 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 13% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Mellette work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Redfield (21%, 19 mi), Aberdeen Township (10%, 21 mi), Huron (6%, 56 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Mellette 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 Mellette, from the people who make the trip.
More of Mellette
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.