City · Minnesota
Empire, Minnesota
Empire, city, in Dakota County, Minnesota. Empire had 3,063 residents on July 1, 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 2.3% since 2020 and the ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates put it at 3,092 (±28). GEOID 2719358.
Residents, July 2025 estimate
3,063
Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: – · ACS 2020-2024: 3,092 ±28
Median household income
$147,700
±$19,256 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $89,062
Median home value
$469,500
±$31,708 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $329,300
Median gross rent
$2,052
±$360 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $1,280
Where is Empire and what county is it in?
Empire is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota. It covers 30.5 square miles of land.
Empire is in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metropolitan statistical area, which takes in 15 counties (Census Bureau delineation, July 2023).
Source: 2024 Gazetteer and 2020 place-by-county files, U.S. Census Bureau · Census reference files
How many people live in Empire, and is it growing?
The Census Bureau estimates that 3,063 people lived in Empire on July 1, 2025, down 2.3% since 2020, while Minnesota grew 2.2%. The 2020-2024 American Community Survey, a five-year sample, puts the population at 3,092 (±28).
| Measure | Empire | Dakota County | Change since 2015-2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total population | 3,092±28 | 445,771 | – |
| Households | 1,014±78 | 174,362 | – |
| Average household size | 3.04±0.24 | 2.54 | – |
| Housing units | 1,030±81 | 178,879 | – |
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); Census PEP Vintage 2025 (SUB-EST2025, CO-EST2025); 2020 Census P.L. 94-171 · Check it at data.census.gov
Who lives in Empire?
The median resident of Empire is 37.3 years old; 28.6% are under 18 and 14.2% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 93.3%, then non-Hispanic residents of two or more races at 2.8%.
| Measure | Empire | Dakota County | Change since 2015-2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 37.3±1.6 | 38.6 | – |
| Under 18 years | 28.6%±5.3 pts | 24.0% | – |
| 65 years and over | 14.2%±5.5 pts | 15.9% | – |
| Male | 51.6%±3.0 pts | 49.6% | – |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.5%±5.2 pts | 8.7% | – |
| White alone, not Hispanic | 93.3%±5.8 pts | 72.7% | – |
| Black or African American alone, not Hispanic | 0.2%±0.3 pts | 7.7% | – |
| Asian alone, not Hispanic | 0.6%±0.8 pts | 5.2% | – |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic | 0.0%±0.7 pts | 0.2% | – |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic | 0.0%±0.7 pts | 0.0% | – |
| Two or more races, not Hispanic | 2.8%±1.9 pts | 5.0% | – |
| Some other race alone, not Hispanic | 0.6%±0.8 pts | 0.5% | – |
| Born outside the United States | 1.5%±1.5 pts | 10.1% | – |
| Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+) | 2.9%±4.3 pts | 14.1% | – |
| Civilian veterans (age 18+) | 6.4%±2.3 pts | 5.9% | – |
| With a disability | 9.3%±2.9 pts | 10.8% | – |
| No health insurance coverage | 1.2%±0.9 pts | 4.2% | – |
| High school graduate or higher (age 25+) | 97.4%±2.3 pts | 95.2% | – |
| Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+) | 37.4%±5.6 pts | 45.0% | – |
| Graduate or professional degree (age 25+) | 10.9%±3.9 pts | 14.9% | – |
| Lived in the same house a year earlier | 89.6%±7.1 pts | 89.0% | – |
| Moved from another state in the past year | 0.2%±0.4 pts | 1.4% | – |
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov
What do households in Empire earn?
Half of Empire's 1,014 households earn less than $147,700 a year (±$19,256), against $106,318 in Dakota County and $89,062 in Minnesota.
| Measure | Empire | Dakota County | Change since 2015-2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $147,700±$19,256 | $106,318 | – |
| Mean household income | $157,279±$15,162 | $131,262 | – |
| Per capita income | $51,680±$5,951 | $52,084 | – |
| People below the poverty line | 1.9%±1.4 pts | 5.8% | – |
| Children under 18 below the poverty line | 0.0%±2.5 pts | 6.2% | – |
| Households receiving SNAP | 0.4%±0.7 pts | 4.9% | – |
| Households with a computer | 100.0%±2.2 pts | 97.3% | – |
| Households with a broadband subscription | 98.6%±3.7 pts | 94.4% | – |
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov
What does housing cost in Empire?
Owners occupy 94.3% of Empire's occupied homes and renters 5.7%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $469,500 by its owner (±$31,708). The median renter pays $2,052 a month including utilities.
| Measure | Empire | Dakota County | Change since 2015-2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home value (owner-occupied) | $469,500±$31,708 | $381,000 | – |
| Median gross rent | $2,052±$360 | $1,548 | – |
| Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent | 24.1%±22.9 pts | 39.8% | – |
| Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage | $2,593±$137 | $2,129 | – |
| Owner-occupied homes | 94.3%±2.9 pts | 74.9% | – |
| Renter-occupied homes | 5.7%±2.9 pts | 25.1% | – |
| Housing units | 1,030±81 | 178,879 | – |
| Homeowner vacancy rate | 0.0%±2.3 pts | 0.4% | – |
| Rental vacancy rate | 0.0%±31.0 pts | 3.8% | – |
| Single-family detached homes | 91.3%±3.6 pts | 58.1% | – |
| Mobile homes | 0.0%±2.2 pts | 1.6% | – |
| Built 2020 or later | 0.0%±2.2 pts | 2.4% | – |
| Built 2010 to 2019 | 15.8%±3.5 pts | 9.3% | – |
| Built 1939 or earlier | 3.4%±4.3 pts | 4.0% | – |
| Households with no vehicle | 0.0%±2.2 pts | 4.9% | – |
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov
How do people in Empire work and get to work?
73.0% of Empire's workers drive alone and 20.1% work from home. The average trip to work takes 30.4 minutes.
| Measure | Empire | Dakota County | Change since 2015-2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the labor force (age 16+) | 75.9%±4.5 pts | 71.0% | – |
| Unemployment rate | 0.5%±0.8 pts | 3.6% | – |
| Drove alone to work | 73.0%±6.5 pts | 67.8% | – |
| Carpooled | 5.2%±2.9 pts | 7.3% | – |
| Public transportation | 0.2%±0.4 pts | 1.2% | – |
| Walked | 1.0%±1.0 pts | 1.1% | – |
| Worked from home | 20.1%±5.8 pts | 21.3% | – |
| Mean travel time to work | 30.4 min±3.0 | 23.6 min | – |
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov
How does Empire compare with other places in Minnesota?
By the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimates, Empire is the 6,272nd-most populous of the 19,476 U.S. incorporated places that have one and the 211th-most populous of 855 in Minnesota.
Empire is not ranked by income or the other survey measures: those rankings include places of 1,000 or more residents (2020 Census) with a reliable estimate.
| Measure | Rank | Of |
|---|---|---|
| Population, July 2025 estimate | 211th | 855 |
Empire's figures with every place in Minnesota (CSV)
Every place in Minnesota, sortable · Compare Empire with other places
Source: PlainCities ranks computed from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed
How reliable are the figures for Empire?
24 of the 57 figures for Empire on this page carry a coefficient of variation over 40% and are marked with a ring: they come from a small sample, so read them as rough.
The American Community Survey samples about one household in eight over five years, so every figure is an estimate with a 90% margin of error (shown under each value). A ring marks an estimate whose coefficient of variation is over 40%. A change is called only when the gap between the two periods is larger than their combined 90% margin (the square root of the sum of the two squared margins), the Census Bureau's test. How to read a margin of error.
Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026): margins of error as published · ACS technical documentation
How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections
Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Empire are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' public schools in Empire.