Downward angle icon Downward angle icon. Credit: Malick Mercier/Susan Miller/Kyle Rice Supercommuters travel at least 75 miles, or three hours, to get to work. Business Insider spoke to three supercommuters about why they supercommute. One commuter said commuting from New York to Michigan gives him the best of both worlds.
Over the past few years, hybrid work arrangements have seen many American workers find themselves commuting further but traveling to the office less frequently.
They regularly wake up before sunrise and travel at least 75 miles to their workplace or commute for at least three hours. Some of these super commuters could move closer to their offices but choose not to.
Business Insider spoke to three commuters who commute across multiple states each week, who told us the main reasons they refuse to move closer to work.
Flying to Michigan every week for work gives this New Yorker the best of both worlds.
Miller on the University of Michigan football field. Courtesy of Susan Miller
When BI interviewed Susan Miller in April, she had been supercommuting for more than two years.
The professor said he lives in New York City but flies to Ann Arbor, Michigan, every week to teach at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business.
The 500-mile flight takes just two hours each way, and round-trip tickets cost between $120 and $250. The school won't cover her commute, but Miller uses an airline credit card to earn miles and discounts.
“I enjoy the fresh air from the lake and the nature of the Midwest as opposed to city life,” Miller told BI.
At the same time, the professor said he loves returning to his hometown to take advantage of all that makes New York City exciting and interesting.
Living in suburban Delaware on a New York City salary, the commute across four states was worth it.
Kyle Rice. Courtesy of Kyle Rice
Starting in February, Kyle Rice began commuting from Wilmington, Delaware, to New York City every morning for work.
Rice traveled 125 miles across four states to take a job as a project manager for an EMS software company, but the daily commute on Amtrak and the subway took just two hours.
“We would never consider moving to New York because it would not be financially prudent,” Rice told BI.
My new six-figure job doubled my salary, but it meant a $1,510 monthly commute that required an eight-minute drive to Amtrak to catch the 6:30 a.m. train from Wilmington to Newark, a ride that took an hour and 37 minutes.
Rice then boarded the PATH in Newark for the 30-minute train ride to New York City. Despite the travel costs and time, Rice said his home in Delaware is much more affordable than living in New York City.
When BI interviewed Rice in May, his work schedule had changed from daily to twice a week.
Traveling from Los Angeles to New York four times a month has made this flight attendant happier
Mercier works for an airline, but says his long morning commute from Los Angeles to New York can be stressful. Photo courtesy of Malick Mercier
In 2023, flight attendant Malick Mercier moved to Los Angeles to be near a creative crowd, but he still remained a New York flight attendant.
“I knew there would be more creative people in Los Angeles and I felt really happy here during my layover,” Mercier told BI.
Four times a month, he commuted five to eight hours from Los Angeles to New York, a journey that he says wasn't easy: As an airline employee, he sometimes had to take three buses just to get to Los Angeles International Airport before starting the 2,400-mile flight to work, and he would book his flight the night before or on the day of his commute.
Mercier said getting to work on time was sometimes dangerous, but he always made it, and his love and passion for his job made it all worth it.
“A lot of people say, ‘Is it worth it?’ But I say, yes, it is, because this is my dream.”
If you're a super commuter, or have tried super commuting, and would like to share your story, email Manseen Logan at mlogan@businessinsider.com
