Otsego has 0.2 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
At home: 7% of workers have no commute at all (Wisconsin 13%). Otsego has 61 jobs, and 363 of its residents work somewhere. Hardly any work in Otsego; the top destination outside it is Madison (27%, 25 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Otsego at work: what stands out
Otsego’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Otsego is Madison, 25 miles away as the crow flies. 27% of working residents (99) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Otsego is a place people come home to
There are 61 jobs based in Otsego, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Otsego has about 350 people in it, 46% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Otsego workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 29 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 222 hours of commuting, 54 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; with 363 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Close to home or a long way: work trips from Otsego
About 17% 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.
Otsego quiets down on a workday
On a workday 360 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 58 people come in from elsewhere.
About 350 people are in Otsego on a workday afternoon, 46% 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 2023, primary jobs.
The trip to work from Otsego: about 29 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.3 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Otsego workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 373 commuters (the 7% 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 Otsego to work: where people go
Where Otsego clocks in
27% of workers
7% 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.
A place that makes things: 74% of Otsego’s jobs are in goods
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Otsego, 2013 → 2023: 100 → 61. 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 Otsego’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Next door to Otsego
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Otsego workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otsego | – | — | — | 29 min | $86,667 |
| Rio | 7% | C | A− | 29 min | $67,833 |
| Doylestown | under 2% | — | — | 37 min | — |
| Springvale | under 2% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| Lowville | under 2% | A− | D− | 30 min | $108,063 |
| Fountain Prairie | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Doylestown, Springvale and Fountain Prairie: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
The biggest share goes to Rio. Darker towns draw more of Otsego’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 Otsego: questions
What is the median household income in Otsego?
$86,667 (±$31,339) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Otsego?
7.0%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Otsego?
29 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 7% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Otsego work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Madison (27%, 25 mi), Rio (7%, 4 mi), Columbus (4%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Otsego 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 Otsego, from the people who make the trip.
More of Otsego
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.