See what the average commute is in Shelby 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 Shelby County using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics are calculated based on 2020 5-year estimates. Shelby County has a shorter commute than three out of five neighboring counties, with Harrison County, IA having the longest commute at 27.9 minutes.

Shelby County commuting by the numbers
- Average commute: 17.6 minutes
--- 9.7% lower than state average
--- #21 best commute in the state
- Workers with 1+ hour commute: 5.6%
- Workers who drive to work: 86.2%
--- Workers who carpool to work: 7.7%
- Workers who take public transport to work: 0.3%
- Workers who work from home: 9.2%
- Left for work between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.: 15.2%
- Worked outside county of residence: 17.9%

Commutes in neighboring counties
#1. Carroll County, IA: 13.9 minutes
#2. Crawford County, IA: 17.1 minutes
#3. Shelby County, IA: 17.6 minutes
#4. Cass County, IA: 18.1 minutes
#5. Pottawattamie County, IA: 20.8 minutes
#6. Harrison County, IA: 27.9 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