Photo: Bp0 at English Wikipedia · Public domainWatertown has lower unemployment (1.8%) than 87% of U.S. towns
Working residents average 13 minutes each way; South Dakota averages 18, the U.S. 26. Jobs and income earn Watertown B; getting around on foot earns it B. About two in three work in Watertown; the top destination outside it is Sioux Falls (9%, 97 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Watertown
Most jobs in Watertown go to people who live here
Of the 13,680 jobs based in Watertown, 57% are held by Watertown residents. In most towns, people from elsewhere hold most of the local jobs. Day and night ↓
Watertown’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Watertown is Sioux Falls, 97 miles away as the crow flies. 9% of working residents (1,035) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Commutes from Watertown are quick
The average trip to work takes 13 minutes, against 18 across South Dakota. That’s about 38 hours a year less on the road than the typical South Dakota 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.
Watertown’s Jobs & income grade, measure by measure
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Watertown is better than 58% of U.S. towns, #15 of 35 in South Dakota. Unemployment holds Watertown’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 37% of U.S. towns). It also does well on the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Watertown could be anywhere from B− to B+.
Who leaves Watertown for work, and who comes in
On a workday 3,894 residents head out to work, 7,776 work right here, and 5,904 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 (1.17 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.
Miles to work from Watertown
About 21% 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.
How long Watertown spends getting to work: about 13 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Watertown workers work from home, vs 10% across South Dakota. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 11,728 commuters (the 5% 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.
Where Watertown goes to work
Where Watertown 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.
Goods, not services: 29% of the jobs in Watertown
13,680 jobs are based in Watertown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Watertown, 2013 → 2023: 13,235 → 13,680. 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 Watertown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The commute in Watertown is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Watertown is more walkable than 65% of U.S. towns, #19 of 35 in South Dakota. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 4.3% across South Dakota.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 12,314 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 6.3% of Watertown households have no vehicle (South Dakota 5.2%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Watertown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Watertown places 931st of 1,577 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 17,000 to 32,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Springfield VA | 22,532 | $163K | 1.9% | 1.7% | 3% | A+ |
| 2 | Mountain Brook AL | 21,661 | $201K | 3.2% | 1.2% | 8% | A+ |
| 3 | Lake Forest IL | 19,731 | $235K | 3.5% | 1.8% | 12% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 929 | Payson UT | 24,630 | $90K | 7.3% | 5.8% | 13% | B |
| 930 | Queensbury NY | 29,049 | $90K | 8.1% | 4.8% | 22% | B |
| 931 | Watertown SD | 23,736 | $70K | 9.0% | 1.8% | 67% | B |
| 932 | Davenport FL | 18,110 | $74K | 14.0% | 2.7% | 1% | B |
| 933 | Fayetteville GA | 20,465 | $82K | 8.1% | 7.4% | 10% | B |
| 934 | Brookings SD | 25,355 | $63K | 16.9% | 4.5% | 63% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,216 | Aberdeen SD | 27,961 | $64K | 13.8% | 3.7% | 67% | C+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,577 | Nogales AZ | 19,495 | $43K | 28.0% | 15.7% | 37% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Watertown, the top three, the last and three more from South Dakota.
Around Watertown: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Elmira Township (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Watertown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watertown | – | B | B | 13 min | $69,600 |
| Lake Township | under 1% | — | — | 20 min | — |
| Elmira Township | 1% | — | — | 10 min | — |
| Sheridan Township | 1% | — | — | 17 min | — |
| Pelican Township | under 1% | — | — | 13 min | — |
| Richland Township | under 1% | — | — | 20 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Lake Township, Elmira Township, Sheridan Township and Richland Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Pelican Township: not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Watertown’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
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 Watertown: questions
What is the median household income in Watertown?
$69,600 (±$6,806) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $75,081 across South Dakota and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Watertown?
9.0%, against 11.9% across South Dakota and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Watertown?
13 minutes each way on average, against 18 across South Dakota and 26 nationally. 5% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Watertown work?
67% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Sioux Falls (9%, 97 mi), Brookings (2%, 46 mi), Sheridan Township (1%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Watertown walkable?
Watertown is more walkable than 65% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 8.5 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Watertown without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Watertown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Watertown
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. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.