See what the average commute is in Monroe County, IA

American commutes are getting longer, with a U.S. Census Bureau report released in 2021 revealing the average one-way commute in 2019 reached a record high of 27.6 minutes. Combined with high gas prices, workers' daily commutes are increasingly time-consuming and expensive—so much so that some are calling for commutes to count as part of the workday.

Even worse are travel times for "super commuters"—that unlucky 10% of Americans traveling more than one hour each way to punch a clock.

Stacker compiled statistics about the average commute in Monroe County using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics are calculated based on 2020 5-year estimates. Monroe County has a longer commute than all of its six neighboring counties, with Mahaska County, IA having the shortest commute at 17.3 minutes.

Monroe County commuting by the numbers
- Average commute: 24.3 minutes
--- 24.7% higher than state average
--- #11 worst commute in the state
- Workers with 1+ hour commute: 6.6%
- Workers who drive to work: 89.5%
--- Workers who carpool to work: 9.3%
- Workers who take public transport to work: 0.0%
- Workers who work from home: 7.4%
- Left for work between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.: 27.5%
- Worked outside county of residence: 40.6%

Commutes in neighboring counties
#1. Mahaska County, IA: 17.3 minutes
#2. Wapello County, IA: 18.7 minutes
#3. Marion County, IA: 19.3 minutes
#4. Lucas County, IA: 20.5 minutes
#5. Davis County, IA: 22.2 minutes
#6. Wayne County, IA: 23.4 minutes
#7. Monroe County, IA: 24.3 minutes

Counties with the best commute in Iowa
#1. Sioux County: 13.4 minutes
#2. Buena Vista County: 13.8 minutes
#3. Carroll County: 13.9 minutes

Counties with the worst commute in Iowa
#1. Guthrie County: 28.2 minutes
#2. Harrison County: 27.9 minutes
#3. Madison County: 27.2 minutes