Most of Waterloo commutes out: there are 0.2 jobs for every working resident
Only 1% work in Waterloo; the top destination outside it is Lancaster (21%, 10 miles). Employers in Waterloo report 39 jobs; 246 of its residents have a job. 39% of workers work from home; Wisconsin has 13%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Getting to work from Waterloo, in brief
A lot of Waterloo works from home
39% of Waterloo workers work from home, against 13% across Wisconsin. Time on the road ↓
Waterloo is a place people come home to
There are 39 jobs based in Waterloo, about two for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Waterloo has about 360 people in it, 36% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Waterloo 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 246 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
About 29 minutes each way, longer than most of Wisconsin
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Waterloo workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 195 commuters (the 39% 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.
A workday in Waterloo: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 243 residents head out to work, 3 work right here, and 36 people come in from elsewhere.
About 360 people are in Waterloo on a workday afternoon, 36% 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.
Where Waterloo’s working residents head each day
Where Waterloo clocks in
21% of workers
5% 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.
Most jobs in Waterloo are in services
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Waterloo, 2013 → 2023: 85 → 39. 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 Waterloo’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Waterloo
About 29% 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.
How Waterloo compares with the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Waterloo workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waterloo | – | — | — | 29 min | $87,857 |
| Potosi | under 2% | — | — | 34 min | — |
| Cassville | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Beetown | under 2% | — | — | 29 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Potosi, Cassville and Beetown: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Waterloo’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 Waterloo: questions
What is the median household income in Waterloo?
$87,857 (±$30,903) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Waterloo?
2.2%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Waterloo?
29 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 39% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Waterloo work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lancaster (21%, 10 mi), Cassville (7%, 8 mi), Dubuque (5%, 17 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Waterloo without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Waterloo, from the people who make the trip.
More of Waterloo
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.