Cleveland has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Employers in Cleveland report 26 jobs for 248 working residents. Hardly any work in Cleveland itself; outside it, Eau Claire draws the most (8%, 32 miles). Home is the office for 6% of workers (Wisconsin 13%).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What the numbers say about work in Cleveland
Cleveland is a place people come home to
There are 26 jobs based in Cleveland, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Cleveland has about 290 people in it, 43% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Cleveland’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Cleveland is Eau Claire, 32 miles away as the crow flies. 8% of working residents (19) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Cleveland workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 35 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 268 hours of commuting, 100 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 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 248 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
The daily flow of workers through Cleveland
On a workday 247 residents head out to work, 1 work right here, and 25 people come in from elsewhere.
About 290 people are in Cleveland on a workday afternoon, 43% 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.
Near or far: the trip to work from Cleveland
About 37% 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 trip to work from Cleveland: about 35 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Cleveland workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 231 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.
Out of Cleveland to work: where people go
Where Cleveland 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.
What Cleveland’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Cleveland, 2014 → 2024: 16 → 26. 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 Cleveland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The towns around Cleveland
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Cleveland workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | – | — | — | 35 min | $70,833 |
| Fairchild | under 3% | — | — | 31 min | — |
| Garfield | under 3% | — | — | 27 min | — |
| Mentor | under 3% | — | — | 29 min | — |
| Garden Valley | under 3% | — | — | 34 min | — |
| Bridge Creek | under 3% | B− | B | 28 min | $83,413 |
Same-state neighbors only. Fairchild, Mentor and Garden Valley: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Garfield: the same community as the town of that name, graded once. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Cleveland’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 Cleveland: questions
What is the median household income in Cleveland?
$70,833 (±$11,229) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Cleveland?
9.6%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Cleveland?
35 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 6% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Cleveland work?
<1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Eau Claire (8%, 32 mi), Black River Falls (7%, 18 mi), Whitehall (6%, 22 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Cleveland 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 Cleveland, from the people who make the trip.
More of Cleveland
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.