Grove Street Historic District · Photo: TheCatalyst31 · CC0At 2.6%, unemployment in Evansville is lower than in 76% of U.S. towns
Commuters spend 27 minutes getting to work on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. The two grades for Evansville are A− for jobs and income and C+ for walkability. About one in five work in Evansville; the top destination outside it is Madison (14%, 22 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Evansville: the gist
Evansville’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Evansville is Madison, 23 miles away as the crow flies. 14% of working residents (298) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Evansville workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 27 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 207 hours of commuting, 38 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 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Evansville
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Evansville is better than 78% of U.S. towns, #176 of 362 in Wisconsin. The poverty rate is its strongest input (5.6%, U.S. 12.5%); household income ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns ($81,149, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on household income and unemployment and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Evansville could be anywhere from B to A.
Miles to work from Evansville
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.
Commuting from Evansville: about 27 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Evansville workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,934 commuters (the 10% 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.
Evansville on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,705 residents head out to work, 403 work right here, and 1,374 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 (0.84 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.
Where people from Evansville work
Where Evansville clocks in
14% of workers
11% of workers
4% 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.
Goods, not services: 34% of the jobs in Evansville
1,777 jobs are based in Evansville.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Evansville, 2013 → 2023: 1,511 → 1,777. 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 Evansville’s own residents hold wherever they work.
For most of Evansville, work means a drive
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Evansville is more walkable than 39% of U.S. towns, #220 of 362 in Wisconsin. Both inputs place Evansville near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,257 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about under 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.2% of Evansville households have no vehicle (Wisconsin 6.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Evansville’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Evansville is 858th of 3,432 U.S. towns of 4,100 to 7,900
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Ho-Ho-Kus NJ | 4,313 | $250K | 0.0% | 1.7% | 6% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 18 | Fox Point WI | 6,583 | $141K | 2.5% | 0.4% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 29 | Elm Grove WI | 6,354 | $158K | 4.4% | 0.7% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 59 | Bristol WI | 4,347 | $141K | 1.2% | 0.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 856 | Woodmore MD | 4,613 | $184K | 7.3% | 6.9% | 1% | A− |
| 857 | Carlisle IA | 4,532 | $109K | 3.1% | 6.1% | 9% | A− |
| 858 | Evansville WI | 5,837 | $81K | 5.6% | 2.6% | 19% | A− |
| 859 | Harpswell ME | 5,102 | $96K | 5.6% | 1.2% | 12% | A− |
| 860 | Addison Township MI | 6,321 | $111K | 5.2% | 4.5% | 4% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,432 | Medina TX | 4,226 | $22K | 53.8% | 10.1% | 4% | 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 Evansville, the top three, the last and three more from Wisconsin.
Next door to Evansville
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Evansville workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evansville | – | A− | C+ | 27 min | $81,149 |
| Union | under 2% | A | D | 26 min | $99,279 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Evansville’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 Evansville: questions
What is the median household income in Evansville?
$81,149 (±$7,513) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Evansville?
5.6%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Evansville?
27 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Evansville work?
19% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Madison (14%, 22 mi), Janesville (11%, 16 mi), Stoughton (4%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Evansville walkable?
Evansville is more walkable than 39% of U.S. towns (Walkability C+): an EPA walkability index of 6.4 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Evansville without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Evansville, from the people who make the trip.
More of Evansville
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.