Where do Wyoming Residents Live and Work?

Commuting plays an important role in the swap of goods, services, and people across the Cowboy State.

Analyzing recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division say that more non-resident workers hold jobs in Wyoming than the number of Wyoming workers employed in other states.

Of the workers who worked and earned wages in Wyoming in 2020, 9.5% were residents of other states.

Yet less than 3% of Wyomgites are crossing state lines to work elsewhere. They are, however, commuting intrastate to different counties for employment.

In 2020, 51.2% of workers in Crook County worked outside their residence; 40% of workers in Converse, Johnson, Lincoln, Niobrara and Weston Counties did too.

Non-county workers who lived in Crook County and Teton County held more than half the jobs therein.

In Natrona County, 81.6% of workers also live in the area. Residents from Laramie County, Converse County and Campbell County make up about 7% of the workforce in Natrona County.

“Information about the relationship between the residence and workplace helps policy makers better understand their community’s housing demand and labor force availability, as well as issues related to economic development, job training, transportation infrastructure, and provisions of public services and local amenities,” said Dr. Wenlin Liu, Chief Economist with the State of Wyoming, Economic Analysis Division.

Where people choose to live and work also has an impact on the state and local government tax base.  “Workers who commute from outside of a region often times spend most of their earnings where they live rather than where they work,” stated Liu.