Blue Earth County, Minnesota

Blue Earth County has a population of 69,871 and has grown 2.2% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $266,700, about 3.6 times the county's median household income of $74,477.

Home price
$266,700
Income
$74,477
Population
69,871
Unemployment
4.9%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$266,700county
Median gross rent$1,123county
Median year homes here were built1978county
Share of homes built before 198052.1%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile4.9%county
Share of homes that are vacant7.6%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented38.6%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use1.4%county
Typical monthly rent$1,231county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$1,171county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$977county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$1,629county
Home insurance / yr$2,729(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living94.6(statewide)
Median household income$74,477county
Family health premium / yr$23,565(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$22,569(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.846(statewide)
Poverty rate15.7%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home8.5%county
Unemployment rate4.9%county
Share of adults in the labor force69.3%county
Share of workers who are self-employed3.7%county
Share of workers employed by government14.5%county
Share of workers in the largest industry29.7%county
Economic output per resident$80,730county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.98%county
Top state income tax9.85%(statewide)
Capital gains tax10.85%(statewide)
Combined sales tax8.14%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time16.8 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service64 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport18054481county
Miles to nearest general aviation field7.2 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here1county
Passenger train stations and the railway network0county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station72 micounty
Households without a vehicle6.6%county
Traffic deaths17.2county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,0002.5(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher34.2%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher94.7%county
Public schools in the county25county
Public school enrollment9034county
Students per full-time teacher16.3county
Free lunch eligible37.0%county
Elementary schools10county
Middle schools1county
High schools6county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above2county
Share of local colleges that are public50.0%county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution1.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians92county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county1county
Hospitals here with an emergency department1county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here5county
Fine particulate matter6.8 µgcounty
Without health insurance4.3%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year12.9%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year9.4%county
Frequent mental distress20.4%county
No leisure-time physical activity24.7%county
Diagnosed diabetes9.3%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population69,871county
Land area in square miles748county
People per square mile of land93.4county
Supermarkets and grocery stores7county
Convenience stores0county
Share living far from a food store16.8%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract26.5%county
Population change since 2020+2.2%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents1county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents3county
Median age31.6 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1819.7%county
Share of residents 65 and over15.3%county
Share of households that are one person28.1%county
Share of residents born outside the United States5.4%county
Second languages7.7%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls52.7%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents111county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents3county
Households that moved in2,222county
Households that moved away2,542county
Average income of arriving households$47,996county
Average income of departing households$51,585county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes9county
Housing units authorised in the latest year274county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings32.1%county
Violent crime rate257(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature47.3°Fcounty
Annual precipitation31.9 incounty
Annual snowfall0.0 incounty
Average daily solar energy3.81 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F6 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing137 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 6acounty
Frost-free days165 dayscounty
Average last spring frostApr 26county
Average first fall frostOct 7county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$137county
Electric utilities serving this county6county
Electricity price per kWh15.4¢county
Household electricity use941 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$13.14(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity20.2%county
Homes heated by utility gas64.7%county
Homes heated by propane12.1%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.5%county
Homes heated by wood1.1%county
Households with broadband88.9%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk65.9county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk78.8county
Landslide risk67.8county
Hail risk85.3county
Earthquake risk15.8county
Tornado risk77.1county
Tropical cyclone risk0.0county
Extreme heat risk69.3county
Winter weather risk93.5county
Strong wind risk95.2county
Wildfire risk31.8county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Blue Earth County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the Minnesota figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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