McFarland House · Photo: James Steakley · CC BY-SA 3.0For about half of its working residents, McFarland is a commute to Madison
For 22% of workers, the job is at home (Wisconsin 13%). McFarland grades A for jobs and income and B for walkability. Measured by household income, McFarland is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where McFarland stands out on work
More than half of McFarland works in Madison
2,472 working residents, 50%, have their main job in Madison, 8.7 miles away across the town line. That’s 6 times as many as work in McFarland itself. The commute map ↓
Most McFarland residents work close to home
64% of working residents have their main job less than 10 miles from home, about two in three. How far ↓
A lot of McFarland works from home
22% of McFarland workers work from home, against 13% across Wisconsin. 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.
The figures behind McFarland’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, McFarland is better than 89% of U.S. towns, #114 of 362 in Wisconsin. The poverty rate is its strongest input (3.8%, U.S. 12.5%); unemployment ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns (3.4%, U.S. 5.2%). 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, McFarland could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
Out of McFarland to work: where people go
Where McFarland clocks in
50% of workers
4% of workers
3% 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.
Where in the region McFarland works
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.
About 19 minutes to work from McFarland
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of McFarland workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,984 commuters (the 22% 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.
How a workday changes McFarland
On a workday 4,499 residents head out to work, 398 work right here, and 2,623 people come in from elsewhere.
About 7,300 people are in McFarland on a workday afternoon, 21% fewer than live here.
0.62 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.
The 3,021 jobs based in McFarland
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in McFarland, 2013 → 2023: 2,833 → 3,021. 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 McFarland’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Getting around McFarland: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, McFarland is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns, #158 of 362 in Wisconsin. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 4.8% across Wisconsin.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 5,084 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 53% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 4% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.4 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 62% 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). 1.2% of McFarland households have no vehicle (Wisconsin 6.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of McFarland’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, McFarland is 495th of 2,855 U.S. towns of 6,400 to 12,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 13 | Fox Point WI | 6,583 | $141K | 2.5% | 0.4% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 39 | Waukesha WI | 8,507 | $131K | 3.0% | 1.2% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 57 | Genesee WI | 7,235 | $119K | 3.3% | 0.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 493 | Beachwood NJ | 11,340 | $107K | 4.5% | 3.1% | 3% | A |
| 494 | Dripping Springs TX | 11,167 | $109K | 2.1% | 3.4% | 9% | A |
| 495 | McFarland WI | 9,145 | $98K | 3.8% | 3.4% | 8% | A |
| 496 | Canton CT | 10,304 | $118K | 5.7% | 3.1% | 11% | A |
| 497 | Lowell AR | 12,184 | $96K | 6.9% | 1.4% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 2,855 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | 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 McFarland, the top three, the last and three more from Wisconsin.
McFarland and its neighbors: 50% work next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | McFarland workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McFarland | – | A | B | 19 min | $97,500 |
| Dunn | under 2% | A+ | D | 22 min | $127,734 |
| Madison | 50% | A− | A+ | 19 min | $78,050 |
| Blooming Grove | under 2% | A− | A+ | 21 min | $90,000 |
| Cottage Grove | under 2% | B+ | C− | 26 min | $87,218 |
| Pleasant Springs | under 2% | A+ | B | 23 min | $119,273 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Madison. Darker towns draw more of McFarland’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 McFarland: questions
What is the median household income in McFarland?
$97,500 (±$17,022) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in McFarland?
3.8%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from McFarland?
19 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 22% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in McFarland work?
8% work in town.
Is McFarland walkable?
McFarland is more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns (Walkability B): an EPA walkability index of 10.3 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around McFarland without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. 4% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from McFarland, from the people who make the trip.
More of McFarland
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.