See what the average commute is in Polk 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 Polk County using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics are calculated based on 2020 5-year estimates. Polk County has a shorter commute than four out of six neighboring counties, with Madison County, IA having the longest commute at 27.2 minutes.

Polk County commuting by the numbers
- Average commute: 19.6 minutes
--- 0.6% higher than state average
--- #47 best commute in the state
- Workers with 1+ hour commute: 1.9%
- Workers who drive to work: 89.2%
--- Workers who carpool to work: 7.9%
- Workers who take public transport to work: 1.2%
- Workers who work from home: 6.8%
- Left for work between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.: 9.5%
- Worked outside county of residence: 11.6%

Commutes in neighboring counties
#1. Story County, IA: 18.2 minutes
#2. Marion County, IA: 19.3 minutes
#3. Polk County, IA: 19.6 minutes
#4. Dallas County, IA: 21.2 minutes
#5. Jasper County, IA: 23.2 minutes
#6. Warren County, IA: 24.8 minutes
#7. Madison County, IA: 27.2 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