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Place dossier plate
SheetMN-BROWNTON-MN · Brownton, MN 530 pop · income 58th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Brownton
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Brownton on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Republic · lowest
41,136
Republic · lowest
41,136 median HH income
25.5% of the leader · rank #1
Brownton · this city
77,159
Brownton · this city
77,159 median HH income
47.9% of the leader · rank #2
Ravena · near
77,163
Ravena · near
77,163 median HH income
47.9% of the leader · rank #3
Citrus Heights · near
77,167
Citrus Heights · near
77,167 median HH income
47.9% of the leader · rank #4
Mount Vernon · near
77,171
Mount Vernon · near
77,171 median HH income
47.9% of the leader · rank #5
Middletown · near
77,174
Middletown · near
77,174 median HH income
47.9% of the leader · rank #6
Medicine Lake · highest
161,250
Medicine Lake · highest
161,250 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Brownton on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 530.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Brownton - the verdict
Nationally, Brownton sits in the 58th percentile for household income and the 83rd percentile for safety among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
58th
percentile, household income
26th
percentile, home value
36th
percentile, median rent
83rd
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Brownton, MN
Minnesota's Brownton is a small town, with 530 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Brownton households earn a median of $77,159 annually, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 4.8%. Brownton's housing stock carries a median value of $148,500, and the median resident age is 46.2 years. About 10.3% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 57.7% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 0 residential units authorized here in 2024 (No Permits). Brownton reports a comparatively low crime rate: FBI UCR figures show 565.0 crimes per 100,000 residents, below the national average (reporting is voluntary across agencies, so treat this as reporting activity rather than a definitive danger score).
Minnesota tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Minnesota scores 98.6 (Near Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,125 monthly. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Minnesota run around $225, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 42.4 out of 100 (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Brownton's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from comparison shortlist to housing and income to work and mobility to reported crime to population change; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Brownton, city-specific coverage includes FBI reported-crime rates, local building permits, annual population history, commute-mode shares.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Comparison shortlist
Which cities make useful reference points for Brownton?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within Minnesota, the closest population matches are Cosmos (529 residents, $50,833 income); Sturgeon Lake (526 residents, $77,500 income); Stephen (524 residents, $63,750 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Chefornak, AK (530 residents); Enola, AR (530 residents); Ailey, GA (530 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
How far does income reach against housing in Brownton?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. The ratio makes housing the clearest place to start this profile, but a low multiple can coexist with slow demand, older stock, or household-level hardship. Compare the home-value distribution and same-state peer table before treating it as an advantage.
The home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 1.9 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 4.8%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
What does the journey to work look like in Brownton?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 82.0%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Brownton?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 565.0 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 75% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Population change
Is Brownton growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -23 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -3.2% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 0 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
2020 estimate
725
2025 estimate
702
Period change
-3.2%
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
Above median income · poverty 4.8% (Below-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
98.6 (US=100)
Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Minnesota average
C
City profile score · Brownton, MN
57/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Violent crime A+
0 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Poverty rate B-
4.8%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income C
$77,159
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Cost of living D
98.6 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Bachelor's+ share F
10.3%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Brownton profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Violent crime: 97/100 (A+) · 0 /100k
Poverty rate: 67/100 (B-) · 4.8%
Household income: 57/100 (C) · $77,159
Cost of living: 46/100 (D) · 98.6 index
Bachelor's+ share: 7/100 (F) · 10.3%
Where Brownton sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Brownton's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Brownton highlighted among 21 peers.Read the chart values
Brownton, MN (this city): home $148,500, crime 565/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Brownton compare to other US cities?
Here's how Brownton stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income58% higher than other cities
Home value26% pricier than other cities
Median rent36% pricier than other cities
Safety83% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Minnesota alone, Brownton ranks #77 of 229 Minnesota cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Brownton against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Minnesota only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Minnesota-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Brownton near the bottom of Minnesota's cities
Among the 785 Minnesota cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Brownton ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Brownton only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#283 of 775
63rd percentile in Minnesota
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 785
0th percentile in Minnesota
Median Home Value
#462 of 774
40th percentile in Minnesota
Poverty Rate
#439 of 785
43rd percentile in Minnesota
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#675 of 784
14th percentile in Minnesota
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Minnesota only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
58th percentile nationally for median household income · 83rd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Brownton's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Brownton's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Brownton's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$148,500Among the most affordablemore affordable than 74% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Brownton's home-value-to-income ratio: 1.9×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#1,385 of 15,516
More affordable than 91% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#1,333 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 1.9×, Brownton sits in the affordable band:
national rank #1,385 of 15,516 and #1,333 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$77,159Brownton, MN median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Brownton, MN median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Brownton, MN.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)10.3%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)4.8%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)57.7%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
530
Median Income
$77,159
Median Home Value
$148,500
Median Age
46.2
Poverty Rate
4.8%
Labor force participation
57.7%
Bachelor's Degree+
10.3%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
565.0
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
0.0
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
565.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Brownton's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
725 residents
2021
720 residents
2022
715 residents
2023
713 residents
2024
709 residents
2025
702 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
Total Permits (2024)
0
housing units authorized
Single-Family
0
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
0
0
0
-
2020
0
0
0
-
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
0
0
0
-
2023
0
0
0
-
2024
0
0
0
-
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
82.0%
Carpool
5.6%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
12.4%
Based on 266 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Minnesota statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $225
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Minnesota at $225 (electricity about $95 , water and sewer about $45 ).
These are Minnesota statewide averages, not a meter reading for Brownton. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Minnesota's BEA cost-of-living index is 98.6 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Brownton is $1,125/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Minnesota statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 42.4 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Minnesota statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Brownton sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Brownton compares to similar-size Minnesota cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.