Most of Chelsea commutes out: there are 0.3 jobs for every working resident
There are 87 jobs in Chelsea, against 304 working residents. Only 2% work in Chelsea itself; outside it, Medford draws the most (20%, 9 miles). Commuters spend 21 minutes getting to work on average, next to 22 for Wisconsin and 26 for the U.S.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets Chelsea apart on work
Chelsea is a place people come home to
There are 87 jobs based in Chelsea, about three for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Chelsea has about 490 people in it, 31% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
32% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 304 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
A workday in Chelsea: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 298 residents head out to work, 6 work right here, and 81 people come in from elsewhere.
About 490 people are in Chelsea on a workday afternoon, 31% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
Short hops and long hauls from Chelsea
About 32% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The towns that employ Chelsea’s residents
Where Chelsea 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.
Making and building: 69% of jobs based in Chelsea
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Chelsea, 2014 → 2024: 84 → 87. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Chelsea’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Time on the road from Chelsea: about 21 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Chelsea workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 263 commuters (the 7% 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 towns around Chelsea
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Chelsea workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | – | — | — | 21 min | $56,875 |
| Greenwood | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Medford | under 2% | A− | C+ | 18 min | $89,479 |
| Westboro | under 2% | — | — | 26 min | — |
| Molitor | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
| Browning | 2% | — | — | 21 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Greenwood: the same community as the city of that name, graded once. Westboro, Molitor and Browning: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Browning. Darker towns draw more of Chelsea’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 2024, 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 Chelsea: questions
What is the median household income in Chelsea?
$56,875 (±$15,878) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Chelsea?
15.8%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Chelsea?
21 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Chelsea work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Medford (20%, 9 mi), Rib Lake (3%, 8 mi), Eau Claire (3%, 64 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Chelsea without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Chelsea, from the people who make the trip.
More of Chelsea
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.