Photo: Wineinger at English Wikipedia · Public domainAt 1.2%, unemployment in Sparta is lower than in 93% of U.S. towns
The two grades for Sparta are A− for jobs and income and D for walkability. Only 1% stay in Sparta for work; outside it, Sparta is the main destination (24%, 3 miles). Measured by household income, Sparta is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Sparta
Sparta is a place people come home to
There are 172 jobs based in Sparta, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Sparta has about 2,100 people in it, 37% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Sparta and Sparta trade workers both ways
Sparta is the top workplace for Sparta residents (24%) and also where the most people who work in Sparta come from (13% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
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 Sparta
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Sparta is better than 81% of U.S. towns, #159 of 362 in Wisconsin. Unemployment holds Sparta’s grade up; job access by car pulls it down (ahead of 39% of U.S. towns). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Sparta could be anywhere from B to A.
Sparta quiets down on a workday
On a workday 1,378 residents head out to work, 14 work right here, and 158 people come in from elsewhere.
About 2,100 people are in Sparta on a workday afternoon, 37% fewer than live here.
0.12 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 towns that employ Sparta’s residents
Where Sparta clocks in
24% of workers
12% 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.
29% of the jobs in Sparta make or build things
172 jobs are based in Sparta.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Sparta, 2013 → 2023: 136 → 172. 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 Sparta’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Sparta: about 18 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Sparta workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,381 commuters (the 11% 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 Sparta commutes less than 19 miles
About 25% 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.
Most of Sparta commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Sparta is more walkable than 5% of U.S. towns, #358 of 362 in Wisconsin. Both inputs place Sparta 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 1,548 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 2.1% of Sparta households have no vehicle (Wisconsin 6.4%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Sparta’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 2,300 to 4,400, Sparta ranks 747th of 4,453 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 40 | Ottawa WI | 3,642 | $153K | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 53 | Jackson WI | 3,950 | $117K | 0.6% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 57 | Bristol WI | 4,347 | $141K | 1.2% | 0.8% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 745 | Perry Township OH | 2,763 | $99K | 6.2% | 0.0% | 5% | A− |
| 746 | Conoy Township PA | 3,289 | $74K | 6.1% | 1.5% | 4% | A− |
| 747 | Sparta WI | 3,277 | $94K | 5.0% | 1.2% | 1% | A− |
| 748 | Plainfield NH | 2,560 | $123K | 5.2% | 0.6% | 10% | A− |
| 749 | Troy Township OH | 2,408 | $91K | 10.1% | 0.0% | 2% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,453 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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 Sparta, the top three, the last and three more from Wisconsin.
Work in the towns next to Sparta
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Sparta workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta | – | A− | D | 18 min | $94,226 |
| Burns | under 2% | — | — | 29 min | — |
| Rockland | under 2% | — | — | 33 min | — |
| Leon | under 2% | A− | D | 24 min | $88,750 |
| Angelo | under 2% | B− | C | 18 min | $71,250 |
| Little Falls | under 2% | B− | C+ | 25 min | $89,038 |
Same-state neighbors only. Burns: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Rockland: the same community as the town of that name, graded once. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Sparta’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 Sparta: questions
What is the median household income in Sparta?
$94,226 (±$20,133) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Sparta?
5.0%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Sparta?
18 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Sparta work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Sparta (24%, 3 mi), La Crosse (12%, 21 mi), Tomah (6%, 18 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Sparta walkable?
Sparta is more walkable than 5% of U.S. towns (Walkability D): an EPA walkability index of 4.6 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Sparta without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Sparta, from the people who make the trip.
More of Sparta
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.