Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0Unemployment in Milton (0.9%) is lower than in 95% of U.S. towns
The average commute takes 30 minutes each way, where Wisconsin has 22 and the U.S. 26. For jobs and income Milton is better than 86% of U.S. towns (A); for walkability it is more walkable than 49% of U.S. towns (B−). About one in ten work in Milton; the top destination outside it is Janesville (24%, 7 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The commute and the jobs: Milton in brief
Milton trades workers with the towns around it
Milton has about as many jobs (2,557) as working residents (2,722), but they are mostly different people: 2,400 residents leave for work each day while 2,235 people come in. Only 13% of the jobs in Milton are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Milton and Janesville trade workers both ways
Janesville is the top workplace for Milton residents (24%) and also where the most people who work in Milton come from (27% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Milton workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 61 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Milton has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Milton went from 1,676 in 2013 to 2,557 in 2023, +53%. The jobs ↓
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; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Milton
Unemployment is its strongest input; household income ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns ($85,959, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Milton could be anywhere from B+ to A.
The daily commute in and out of Milton
On a workday 2,400 residents head out to work, 322 work right here, and 2,235 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 (0.94 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.
The towns that employ Milton’s residents
Where Milton clocks in
24% of workers
10% 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.
Commuting from Milton: about 30 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Milton workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,765 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.
Milton makes things: 32% of its jobs are in goods
2,557 jobs are based in Milton.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Milton, 2013 → 2023: 1,676 → 2,557. 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 Milton’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Milton’s commute, mile by mile
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.
Most of Milton commutes by car
The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.2% 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 3,076 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). 4.1% of Milton households have no vehicle (Wisconsin 6.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Milton’s commuters take a bus or train.
For jobs and income, Milton is 559th of 3,394 U.S. towns of 4,200 to 8,100
| # | 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+ |
| … | |||||||
| 60 | Bristol WI | 4,347 | $141K | 1.2% | 0.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 557 | Chain Lake WA | 4,950 | $161K | 2.7% | 4.2% | <1% | A |
| 558 | Media PA | 5,920 | $89K | 4.1% | 4.2% | 9% | A |
| 559 | Milton WI | 6,024 | $86K | 6.5% | 0.9% | 12% | A |
| 560 | Marrs Township IN | 5,388 | $104K | 7.3% | 0.6% | 4% | A |
| 561 | Atkinson NH | 7,397 | $146K | 1.8% | 5.6% | 5% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 3,394 | 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 Milton, the top three, the last and three more from Wisconsin.
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 Milton: questions
What is the median household income in Milton?
$85,959 (±$4,342) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Milton?
6.5%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Milton?
30 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 10% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Milton work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Janesville (24%, 7 mi), Madison (10%, 33 mi), Fort Atkinson (4%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Milton walkable?
Milton is more walkable than 49% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.9 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Milton without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Milton, from the people who make the trip.
More of Milton
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.