Trade Lake has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
21% of workers have no commute at all, against 13% across Wisconsin. Employers in Trade Lake report 44 jobs, and 401 of its residents work somewhere. Only 2% work in Trade Lake itself; outside it, Grantsburg draws the most (15%, 8 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Jobs and commuting in Trade Lake: the gist
Trade Lake is a place people come home to
There are 44 jobs based in Trade Lake, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Trade Lake has about 590 people in it, 38% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Trade Lake workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 36 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 276 hours of commuting, 107 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Home offices are common in Trade Lake
21% of Trade Lake 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 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; with 401 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Who works in Trade Lake, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 392 residents head out to work, 9 work right here, and 35 people come in from elsewhere.
About 590 people are in Trade Lake on a workday afternoon, 38% 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 2024, primary jobs.
The daily trip from Trade Lake: about 36 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 11.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Trade Lake workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 377 commuters (the 21% 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.
Where the trip to work from Trade Lake ends
Where Trade Lake clocks in
Lines 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.
What Trade Lake’s employers do
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Trade Lake, 2014 → 2024: 25 → 44. 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 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Trade Lake’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Half of Trade Lake commutes less than 19 miles
About 24% 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 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Trade Lake and its neighbors
The biggest share goes to Wood River (8%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Trade Lake workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade Lake | – | — | — | 36 min | $89,250 |
| Anderson | under 2% | — | — | 43 min | — |
| Wood River | 8% | — | — | 23 min | — |
| West Sweden | under 2% | — | — | 29 min | — |
| Laketown | under 2% | C+ | C+ | 30 min | $83,030 |
| Daniels | under 2% | — | — | 30 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Anderson, Wood River, West Sweden and Daniels: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Trade Lake’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 2024, 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 Trade Lake: questions
What is the median household income in Trade Lake?
$89,250 (±$16,551) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Trade Lake?
6.9%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Trade Lake?
36 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 21% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Trade Lake work?
2% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Grantsburg (15%, 8 mi), Wood River (8%, 7 mi), Luck (5%, 10 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Trade Lake without a car?
13% 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 Trade Lake, from the people who make the trip.
More of Trade Lake
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, 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.