Earning a living in Newell
The average commute takes 24 minutes each way, where South Dakota has 18 and the U.S. 26. About one in ten work in Newell; the top destination outside it is Belle Fourche (16%, 22 miles). There are 220 jobs in Newell, and 210 of its residents work somewhere.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Work and commuting in Newell, in brief
Newell and Belle Fourche trade workers both ways
Belle Fourche is the top workplace for Newell residents (16%) and also where the most people who work in Newell come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Newell workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 24 minutes each way, against 18 across South Dakota. Over a year that’s about 184 hours of commuting, 46 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
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 210 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The towns that employ Newell’s residents
Where Newell clocks in
16% of workers
14% of workers
11% 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.
About 24 minutes to work from Newell
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Newell workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 158 commuters (the 15% 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.
Who works in Newell, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 186 residents head out to work, 24 work right here, and 196 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.05 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
What Newell’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Newell, 2013 → 2023: 194 → 220. 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 Newell’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Newell’s commute, mile by mile
About 16% 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 Newell: questions
What is the median household income in Newell?
$84,792 (±$60,272) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Newell?
6.6%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Newell?
24 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Newell work?
11% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Belle Fourche (16%, 22 mi), Rapid City (14%, 46 mi), Spearfish (11%, 25 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Newell without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 13% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Newell, from the people who make the trip.
More of Newell
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.