Wolf River has fewer jobs than working residents: 0.1 for each
There are 46 jobs in Wolf River; 343 of its residents have a job. Only 3% stay in Wolf River for work; outside it, Antigo is the main destination (17%, 22 miles). The trip to work takes 40 minutes on average (Wisconsin 22, U.S. 26).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Wolf River stands out on work
Wolf River is a place people come home to
There are 46 jobs based in Wolf River, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday Wolf River has about 510 people in it, 37% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Wolf River workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 40 minutes each way, against 22 across Wisconsin. Over a year that’s about 307 hours of commuting, 138 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
A big share show a job far from home
40% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
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 343 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
A workday in Wolf River: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 332 residents head out to work, 11 work right here, and 35 people come in from elsewhere.
About 510 people are in Wolf River on a workday afternoon, 37% 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.
A commute of about 40 minutes in Wolf River
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 12.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Wolf River workers work from home, vs 13% across Wisconsin. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 199 commuters (the 13% 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.
The distance from Wolf River to work
About 40% 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.
Where Wolf River goes to work
Where Wolf River clocks in
17% 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.
Mostly services: health care, schools and offices
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Wolf River, 2013 → 2023: 139 → 46. 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 Wolf River’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Wolf River and the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Langlade (4%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Wolf River workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf River | – | — | — | 40 min | $47,500 |
| Doty | under 2% | — | — | 37 min | — |
| Langlade | 4% | — | — | 34 min | — |
| Evergreen | under 2% | — | — | 35 min | — |
| Freedom | under 2% | — | — | 42 min | — |
| Townsend | under 2% | C+ | C− | 23 min | $87,857 |
| Menominee | under 2% | D | C | 22 min | $62,108 |
Same-state neighbors only. Doty and Langlade: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Evergreen and Freedom: the same communities as the places of those names, graded once. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Wolf River’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 Wolf River: questions
What is the median household income in Wolf River?
$47,500 (±$14,548) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $77,485 across Wisconsin and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Wolf River?
15.7%, against 10.6% across Wisconsin and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Wolf River?
40 minutes each way on average, against 22 across Wisconsin and 26 nationally. 14% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Wolf River work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Antigo (17%, 22 mi), White Lake (10%, 6 mi), Wausau (4%, 49 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Can you get around Wolf River 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 Wolf River, from the people who make the trip.
More of Wolf River
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.