Cochrane at work: jobs, income and the commute
Employers in Cochrane report 164 jobs for 224 working residents. Only 5% stay in Cochrane for work; outside it, Winona is the main destination (23%, 15 miles). Working residents average 22 minutes each way, about the same as across Wisconsin.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Cochrane stands out on work
Where Cochrane’s working residents head each day
Where Cochrane clocks in
23% of workers
6% 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.
Cochrane on a workday afternoon
On a workday 212 residents head out to work, 12 work right here, and 152 people come in from elsewhere.
About 360 people are in Cochrane on a workday afternoon, 14% fewer than live here.
0.73 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.
Cochrane works in goods: 52% of its jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Cochrane, 2013 → 2023: 145 → 164. 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 Cochrane’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Cochrane’s commute takes about 22 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Cochrane workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 258 commuters (the 9% 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.
Half of Cochrane commutes less than 15 miles
About 19% 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 Cochrane compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Belvidere (3%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Cochrane workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cochrane | – | — | — | 22 min | $88,542 |
| Belvidere | 3% | — | — | 34 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Belvidere: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Cochrane’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 Cochrane: questions
What is the median household income in Cochrane?
$88,542 (±$18,945) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Cochrane?
5.1%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Cochrane?
22 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Cochrane work?
5% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Winona (23%, 15 mi), Alma (6%, 9 mi), Whitehall (5%, 27 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Cochrane 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 Cochrane, from the people who make the trip.
More of Cochrane
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.