Work and commuting in Carey
The trip to work takes 16 minutes on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. Only 3% stay in Carey for work; outside it, Hurley is the main destination (21%, 11 miles). Home is the office for 6% of workers, next to 13% for Wisconsin as a whole.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
How many people are in Carey by day
On a workday 74 residents head out to work, 2 work right here, and 55 people come in from elsewhere.
About 150 people are in Carey on a workday afternoon, 12% fewer than live here.
0.75 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.
Out of Carey to work: where people go
Where Carey clocks in
21% of workers
12% 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.
What Carey’s employers do
57 jobs are based in Carey.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Carey, 2013 → 2023: 11 → 57. 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 Carey’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Carey’s commute takes about 16 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Carey workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 106 commuters (the 6% who work from home are left out). Across Wisconsin: 86% 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.
The distance from Carey to work
About 25% 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.
27% of Carey works in a town next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Carey workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carey | – | — | — | 16 min | $78,750 |
| Pence | under 3% | — | — | 21 min | — |
| Oma | under 3% | — | — | 18 min | — |
| Hurley | 21% | D | A− | 18 min | $47,083 |
| Knight | 3% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Mercer | under 3% | C− | C− | 27 min | $63,281 |
| Montreal | 3% | — | — | 20 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Pence, Oma, Knight and Montreal: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Hurley. Darker towns draw more of Carey’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 Carey: questions
What is the median household income in Carey?
$78,750 (±$36,484) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Carey?
10.0%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Carey?
16 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Carey work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Hurley (21%, 11 mi), Ironwood (12%, 12 mi), Ashland (11%, 38 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Carey without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 3% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Carey, from the people who make the trip.
More of Carey
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.