City profile · Minnesota · Census ACS 2023

Lake Benton, MN

Lake Benton's Census ACS profile: residents, income, housing, and the joined public-record layers available for this place.

698
Residents
$52,000
Median income
$91,900
Median home
$1,125
Median rent (state)
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Starting with Lake Benton, MN - add up to three more cities on the compare page.

See how it ranks

State rank, size-class rank, and four peer cities for Lake Benton.

Place dossier plate

Sheet MN-LAKE-BENTON-MN · Lake Benton, MN 698 pop · income 23rd pct

POP-VILLAGE · INC-MID · COL-PAR · SAFE-UNK · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · HOME-LOW · BOOK-UNK

  • POP-VILLAGE 698
  • INC-MID $52,000
  • COL-PAR 98.6
  • SAFE-UNK Safety pending
  • RANK-LOWER 23rd
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Lebanon Junction
  • HOME-LOW $91,900
  • BOOK-UNK Tracts pending

Nearest income peer: Lebanon Junction, KY (+ $0 income $)

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 Lake Benton

Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Lake Benton on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.

median HH income

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.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-08

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by population, income

Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Lake Benton on ACS population and median household income . 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: 698.

4 peers

Similar household income

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS median household income. This city: $52,000. Population peers are excluded.

4 peers

Lake Benton - the verdict

Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Lake Benton lands in the 23rd percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.

23rd
percentile, household income
7th
percentile, home value
36th
percentile, median rent
📝 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: Lake Benton, MN

698 people live in Lake Benton, Minnesota - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. The typical household in Lake Benton brings in $52,000 a year, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 3.7%. Lake Benton's housing stock carries a median value of $91,900, and the median resident age is 45.1 years. About 21.7% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 60.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 1 residential units authorized here in 2024 (Stable), up 0% from five years earlier.

Minnesota tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Minnesota at 98.6 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Near Average). Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,125 monthly. Monthly utility costs average around $225 across Minnesota, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. The average commute for Lake Benton workers runs 23.2 minutes, with 76.1% driving alone and 11.8% working from home. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 42.4 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Low).

A decision-led reading path

Useful questions to ask of Lake Benton'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 work and mobility to comparison shortlist to schools and households to population change to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.

For Lake Benton, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, commute-mode shares, local building permits, matched public-school count. No matched row is reported here for FBI reported-crime rates, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.

1. Work and mobility

What does the journey to work look like in Lake Benton?

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.

Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 76.1%. The reported mean trip to work is 23.2 minutes.

Compare commute patterns →

Question 2

Which cities make useful reference points for Lake Benton?

Within Minnesota, the closest population matches are Clarissa (700 residents, $45,500 income); Bovey (690 residents, $67,500 income); Warsaw (690 residents, $115,313 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Hazleton, IA (698 residents); Florien, LA (698 residents); Grantsboro, NC (698 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.

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.

Open a side-by-side comparison →

Question 3

What does the education layer cover for Lake Benton?

The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 21.7% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.

The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.

See how the family ranking is built →

4. Population change

Is Lake Benton growing, shrinking, or holding steady?

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.

Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -11 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -1.6% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 1 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.

See the national growth ranking →

Other supported questions

Why these stay compact

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.

Housing and income

How far does income reach against housing in Lake Benton?

The home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 1.8 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 3.7%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.

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.

Household income
$52,000
Home value
$91,900
Value / income
1.8×

City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.

Compare the housing trade-off →

Population

698 residents

Micro place (under 10k)

Median Household Income

$52,000 /yr

Low income · poverty 3.7% (Below-median poverty)

Cost of Living Index (state)

98.6 (US=100)

Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Minnesota average

City profile score · Lake Benton, MN

45/100

4 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.

Poverty rate B
3.7%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.

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
21.7%

Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.

Household income F
$52,000

Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.

Violent crime N/A
N/A

No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).

Lake Benton profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions) 4-axis radar comparing 1 series across Poverty rate, Cost of living, Bachelor's+ share, Household income. Poverty rateCost of livingBachelor's+ shareHousehold income 45 D
Lake Benton profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)
Read the chart values
  • Poverty rate: 74/100 (B) · 3.7%
  • Cost of living: 46/100 (D) · 98.6 index
  • Bachelor's+ share: 39/100 (F) · 21.7%
  • Household income: 23/100 (F) · $52,000

How does Lake Benton compare to other US cities?

Lake Benton measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.

Household income 23% higher than other cities
Home value 7% pricier than other cities
Median rent 36% pricier than other cities

"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

How we calculate these percentiles & ranks

Each percentile compares Lake Benton 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 Lake Benton near the bottom of Minnesota's cities

Among the 785 Minnesota cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Lake Benton ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Lake Benton only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.

Median Household Income
#642 of 775
17th percentile in Minnesota
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 785
0th percentile in Minnesota
Median Home Value
#668 of 774
14th percentile in Minnesota
Poverty Rate
#497 of 785
36th percentile in Minnesota
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#356 of 784
54th 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.

23rdIncome percentile
Gauge source note

23rd percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.

How Lake Benton's home value compares nationally

Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)

$91,900 Among the most affordable more affordable than 93% of 15,600 US cities

Show national distribution $0–$25,000: 5 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $25,000–$50,000: 54 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $50,000–$75,000: 352 US cities (2%). Below this entry. $75,000–$100,000: 1,086 US cities (7%). This entry sits in this band. $100,000–$125,000: 1,516 US cities (10%). Above this entry. $125,000–$150,000: 1,170 US cities (8%). Above this entry. $150,000–$175,000: 1,278 US cities (8%). Above this entry. $175,000–$200,000: 1,229 US cities (8%). Above this entry. $200,000–$225,000: 1,035 US cities (7%). Above this entry. $225,000–$250,000: 976 US cities (6%). Above this entry. $250,000–$275,000: 754 US cities (5%). Above this entry. $275,000–$300,000: 712 US cities (5%). Above this entry. $300,000–$325,000: 521 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $325,000–$350,000: 526 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $350,000–$375,000: 465 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $375,000–$400,000: 393 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $400,000–$425,000: 317 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $425,000–$450,000: 300 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $450,000–$475,000: 307 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $475,000–$500,000: 250 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $500,000–$525,000: 160 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $525,000–$550,000: 156 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $550,000–$575,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $575,000–$600,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $600,000–$625,000: 163 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $625,000–$650,000: 167 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $650,000–$675,000: 135 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $675,000–$700,000: 101 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $700,000–$725,000: 95 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $725,000–$750,000: 71 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $750,000–$775,000: 65 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $775,000–$800,000: 70 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $800,000–$825,000: 57 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $825,000–$850,000: 67 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $850,000–$875,000: 60 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $875,000–$900,000: 58 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $900,000–$925,000: 47 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $925,000–$950,000: 37 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $950,000–$975,000: 31 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $975,000–$1,000,000: 470 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $1,000,000–$1,025,000: 0 US cities (0%). Above this entry. Lake Benton $0 $1,025,000 every US city, bucketed by value

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

Lake Benton's home-value-to-income ratio: 1.8×

ACS median home value divided by median household income.

Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#919 of 15,516
More affordable than 94% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#891 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)

At 1.8×, Lake Benton sits in the affordable band: national rank #919 of 15,516 and #891 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

$52,000 Lake Benton, MN median household income (Census ACS)

Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Household income distribution - Lake Benton, MN Lake Benton, MN's median household income ($52,000) against the U.S. national quintile-share pattern. The Lorenz curve and quintile bars are national context, not Lake Benton, MN-specific shares. $ Household Income Distribution Lake Benton, MN median $52,000/yr, vs. U.S. national quintile pattern QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Lake Benton, 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 Lake Benton, MN.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 21.7%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 3.7%

Census ACS S1701, poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 60.4%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
698
Median Income
$52,000
Median Home Value
$91,900
Median Age
45.1
Poverty Rate
3.7%
Labor force participation
60.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
21.7%

Schools

Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city

Population Change

PEP vintage

Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025

See the fastest-growing cities →
675 residents680 residents685 residents690 residents 202020212022202320242025 688 residents 677 residents ▼ -1.6%
Lake Benton's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.
Read the chart as text
Period Population
2020 688 residents
2021 682 residents
2022 683 residents
2023 679 residents
2024 681 residents
2025 677 residents

Housing Supply

BPS source

Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized

🏗️ Stable
Total Permits (2024)
1
housing units authorized
Single-Family
1
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
1.4
permits per 1,000 residents

5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)

Year Total
2019 1
2020 1
2021 0
2022 0
2023 3
2024 1

Permit volume increased 0% from 2019 to 2024.

Commute Patterns

Commute source

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Average Commute Time
23.2 minutes
Drive Alone
76.1%
Carpool
8.6%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
3.4%
Work from Home
11.8%

Based on 348 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 Lake Benton. 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 Lake Benton 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 Lake Benton sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.

How Lake Benton 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.

City Population Median Household Income
Lake Benton (this city) 698 $52,000
Clarissa 700 $45,500
Bovey 690 $67,500
Warsaw 690 $115,313
NCES CCD Census BPS 2024
Primary sources on this page

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, NCES CCD, 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.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES. Joins use OMB Bulletin 23-01 / FIPS keys.

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Estimate caveats

ACS and UCR figures are citywide estimates with vintage lags; they do not replace a local visit, school visit, or insurance quote.

Editorial standards, provenance, and how to cite this page

Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

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